Research Outline

Commercial Farming Industry Trends

Goals

To guide a digital strategy and content creation for a client by researching 5-7 trends that are influencing the commercial farming industry at a global level and any potential opportunities the industry is facing.

Early Findings

Use of Farm Robotics

  • Robotics are being used in the "agricultural value chain" for planting, harvesting, and grocery logistics. There has also been a demand for robots in fruit picking farms.
  • John Deere recently acquired Blue River Technology, a tech startup that created a robot that is able to identify unwanted plants and spray them with herbicides that would help reduce input costs.
  • It's estimated that by 2024 robots will push the farm industry to a "$5.7 billion agbot industry."

Competition for Natural Resources

Structural and Employment Change

  • High-income countries are switching from traditional agriculture to service and industry.
  • A shift towards manufactured goods and dietary changes have developed from the interstate movement and reallocation of labor.
  • In response to this, farmers have changed from farming multiple crops to a single crop, dealing in cash crops, and selling in markets.

Indoor Farming

  • Vertical indoor farming is one of the fastest growing trends in global agriculture.
  • In fact, the 2018 U.S. Farm Bill allocated an annual allotment of $10 million to develop "urban agriculture and supporting projects."
  • A major selling point of this trend is this type of farming is pesticide and herbicide free.
  • Whole Foods is one of the major companies that has implemented this type of farming.

Potential Opportunities

  • While monocultures have grown in the world, researchers of global farming/ag argue for diversification since it is more ecological and supports the environment.
  • A couple of other opportunities in the global farming industry is the use of digital technologies and governments creating new policies to align with current environmental issues.