Drone spraying is not yet consolidated and requires more research

Despite its growth in number and importance, the use of drones for pesticide application still requires more extensive research, stated Dr. Rone Batista de Oliveira, a researcher from the State University of Northern Paraná (UENP). 

He presented his conclusions at the panel "Apply Efficiently" during the 27th Showtec, which received special coverage from AgroPages.

According to the specialist, "Many investigations are still required to achieve maturity and stability in the responses for disease and pest control through this technology." André Lourenção, a researcher from Fundação MS, argued that the technology had gained significant traction due to an actual demand.

"Sometimes, you have a very strong, very latent demand in the market. And that is when a product gains the market with a lot of strength," he pointed out. According to him, the drone has the advantage of being "lighter equipment, including financially." 

"But it is necessary to evaluate if it can achieve good efficiency as a sprayer, so some data is still missing, but many people are already using it," the specialist explained. 

Fundação MS researcher, André Lourenção emphasized the uses of this technology in several areas. In his assessment, there is no doubt that this usage "will greatly increase this market."

The researcher bets that the drone would be an additional tool rather than a complete replacement for traditional sprayers. "It will gain market share, but maybe not replace the sprayer. They might work together because the sprayer covers larger areas, and they may not create a drone that can cover as large an area as a Uniport, for example," he said, referring to a widely used technology in Brazil.

However, the Fundação MS researcher affirmed that the "drone will gain space with larger, more modern, and efficient models, so this technology is taking a very important path."

According to the speaker, the drone will significantly benefit farmers but has the same or even higher demands than other application methods. "Whether it is an agricultural aircraft or a self-propelled sprayer, they all have the same requirements. It is necessary to check weight, calibration, the preparation of the mixture for drone application, the sequence of mixes, understanding of the types of products, and product positioning to make a pre-mix that doesn't create incompatibility between the supply and application" all of which need to be considered," de Oliveira highlighted.

(Editing by Leonardo Gottems, reporter for AgroPages)