8.4. Challenges in Agriculture
Adoption
To fully adopt 4.0 technologies in agriculture will take time, although the practices and mindset in the agricultural domain are positive. This sector will face significant challenges from standardising technologies to being able to invest into modern equipment and infrastructures that can support this.
The development of Agriculture 4.0 requires the technological equipment to be compatible with its standards. With the lifespan of agricultural equipment, these standards are fundamental
Indeed, given the lifespan of agricultural equipment, standards are a necessity to ensure that any choices made (mainly technological, for example software) are compatible with the newest equipment and is supported by the manufacturers and other industrials.
The need to have data exchange and communication standards that link the different systems together in a unified system covering all aspects of the agricultural exploitation, is a huge challenge to be adopted in Industry 4.0.
Farmers
Another challenge in the adoption process, is the ability of farmers to invest and modernise their equipment and practises. Very often, the major issue with farmers are the low economic funds, with a very small ability to invest in new equipment and a limited access to credit.
Another factor in the adoption of Agriculture 4.0 is age. According to an article published by Euroactiv (Farming 4.0: The future of agriculture?), in 2013, over 56% of farmers in Europe are over 55 years old. Due to this, the digital skills of the workforce are limited and require additional investment in training to adopt technologies.
Furthermore, the willingness and ability to invest in new technologies face a risk of creating important gaps in production abilities between regions and exploitations.
Tasks
Additional Task: https://h5p.org/node/728210