UEL integrates precision agriculture research for small and large producers - January 2025

UEL, through the Center for Artificial Intelligence in Agriculture (CIA-Agro), will participate in the Collaborative Development Project for Precision and Digital Agriculture, which aims to develop and promote precision agriculture for small and large rural producers. The details were presented on Thursday (30) during a meeting in the Council Room, on the University Campus, with the participation of the Secretary of State for Innovation, Modernization and Digital Transformation, Alex Canziani, the Dean Marta Favaro and representatives of the other partners in the project - the Ministry of Agriculture (MAPA), the Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA), UTFPR, EMBRAPA, IDR-Paraná and the ABC Foundation.

The Precision Agriculture Collaborative Project is the result of a partnership between the Brazilian and Japanese Governments, involving MAPA and JICA, which will bring together various players such as universities, research centers, farmers, cooperatives and rural producers to generate and research data on precision agriculture. The proposal is to generate and collect information that will be used to track and prove a more sustainable and productive activity, with greater efficiency

The Dean of UEL emphasized the importance of collective work involving researchers and farmers, with a focus on social impact. “This is what happens when institutions from different areas come together with such important objectives. In the end, we will be able to change and improve the living conditions of thousands of people,” she said.

Secretary Alex Canziani said that the initiative has the support of the state government since the impacts of the studies could benefit rural producers in Paraná. “It's an initiative that will bring important advances because Artificial Intelligence offers great potential for economic development, supported above all by technology,” he said.

Infrastructure - One of the project's coordinators, Ricardo Inamasu, from EMBRAPA Instrumentation in São Carlos (SP), explained that Cia Agro's participation will be important because it brings together a team that works with Artificial Intelligence, one of the most efficient tools for digital transformation. “Being with this group means putting the project on the current level of innovation and the most promising technology.” According to him, it is also essential to work in Paraná, which brings together more than 65 agricultural cooperatives, with 215 thousand members, which corresponds to an important infrastructure within the national agribusiness scenario.

The coordinator explained that so-called precision and digital agriculture are the enablers of the new type of agriculture. The project represents an effort by government bodies, universities, farmers, companies and agricultural cooperatives to transform the sector, seeking modernization. According to him, in this new model of activity, small producers can gain a lot in efficiency, especially considering the behavior of the new generation of farmers who are connected to new technologies. “We are keeping an eye on the sector and preparing it for this new generation. It's the transformation of the activity model, designing our future based on sustainable agriculture that is integrated with society,” he said.

Precision agriculture - Made up of Professors from UEL and UTFPR, as well as researchers from public institutions focused on rural development, the Agribusiness Intelligence Center (Cia Agro) develops predictive systems (analysis of specific sets of data to forecast scenarios or trends for the near or relatively distant future) to combat Asian rust and white mold, the main soybean diseases.

Another objective of Cia Agro is to integrate sub-projects in the areas of Computer Science and Agricultural Sciences, as well as developing partnerships with companies, universities, cooperatives and startups. The organization has existed since 2020 and is part of the concept of New Research and Innovation Arrangements (Napi) in Paraná, with the support of the Araucária Foundation. The project is eligible for private investment during the development period.

Written by: Pedro Livoratti (Agência UEL). Published in January 30 of 2025. Translated by the JICA Project Team. Source: https://operobal.uel.br/proppg/2025/01/30/uel-integra-pesquisa-de-agricultura-de-precisao-para-pequenos-e-grandes-produtores/

Picture: UEL - 30.01.2025.