Bayer launches Digital Farming business in Australia

The Crop Science division of Bayer has launched a new digital farming business committed to enabling farmers to work smarter, by combining their expertise and knowledge of the land with modern, digitally-enabled tools.

Bayer Managing Director Joerg Ellmanns, said the digital transformation of the sector continues to have a fundamentally positive effect on modern, sustainable agriculture.

“As the world’s population grows and factors such as urbanisation, climate change and soil degradation limit the amount of broadacre farmland, agricultural productivity will need to continue its rise to safeguard our food supply in the long term,” Mr Ellmanns said.

“Digital farming helps farmers produce the maximum amount of food from every crop in every paddock, reducing the need to use more land. More efficient use of raw materials and other inputs will also contribute to Bayer’s sustainability goals. Bayer has committed to reducing the environmental impact of crop protection by 30 per cent by 2030, a key part of our drive to shape a more sustainable future for agriculture.”

Head of Digital Farming Chris Staff said a commitment to enhanced digital capabilities will support Bayer’s efforts to help Australian farmers gain a deeper understanding of their operations, allowing them to collect and store billions of data points to monitor field variability, optimise inputs and stop problems before they start.

“Digital farming integrates detailed information on factors such as weather conditions, soil moisture, soil nutrient levels and crop health to improve on-farm decision-making, leveraging application technology and data science to maximise efficiency and productivity. We are proud to help farmers make data-driven decisions in real-time while using resources more precisely and effectively, conserving water, energy, fertiliser and crop protection inputs,” Mr Staff said.

“By planting the right varieties and applying fertilisers or crop protection products at the right time and rates, farmers reach their maximum yield potential from every crop on every field, reducing the need to use more land.

“We are committed to setting new standards for sustainable agriculture and excited by the possibilities that FieldView can bring to Australian farmers and, indeed, to the Australian agriculture industry.”

Bayer’s digital platform, FieldView, delivers seamless data collection, visualisation and analysis to help farmers make more informed decisions. Users own their data and can choose to combine their data with public and private information sources to deliver powerful insights that help with making key decisions throughout the year.

“While FieldView as a standalone product will improve on-farm decision making and data collection, it is also globally the most connected digital ag platform with over 60 platform partners. This global partner network offers Australian growers’ industry leading support,” Mr Staff said.

“In addition, Bayer is committed to working with the Australian ag-tech community to deliver new technologies to farmers. Collaboration will be the key to realising the full value digital farming can provide to farmers and society.”

Bayer is currently piloting FieldView in Australia, with the aim to commercialise for Australian growers.