Smarter, fairer, greener: Europe unites digital forces for farming’s future

The agri-food sector is digitalising at great speed, with artificial intelligence, robotics and business information systems supporting every step of production in smarter ways. But progress does not happen automatically. Knowledge and resources are scattered, making it difficult to scale up innovations. Farmers are often wary too: what happens to their farm data, and who benefits from it?

“Wageningen University & Research (WUR) is working on ways to share data on yields, crops, climate change and markets more intelligently and securely,” explains senior researcher Sjaak Wolfert. “In a way that ensures the data is not only used efficiently but also benefits everyone. Together with the Dutch Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature, and European partners, we are taking a leading role in this.” 

Wolfert and his colleagues built a network of more than 140 Digital Innovation Hubs under the name SmartAgriHubs. These hubs are local centres where expertise, technology and practice come together and are turned into innovative solutions. “The ecosystem is made accessible through the Synergy Portal, where farmers, technology suppliers and policymakers can use an interactive European map to see what other hubs are doing. Contact persons are listed, making it easy to exchange knowledge and experience,” he explains.

Around forty innovation experiments have already brought digital solutions directly into the fields. For instance, farmers in the Baltic States now use a Dutch application for precision farming in potato cultivation. 

WUR is also working on AgrifoodTEF, providing companies with realistic test environments for AI and robotics. In the Netherlands, WUR leads the national node, with facilities such as the Farm of the Future and AI labs. Here, prototypes are tested in practice with a strong focus on ethics and societal impact.

“This is the case in all our projects,” Wolfert notes. “In ELSA Labs (Ethical, Legal and Societal Aspects), researchers, businesses, policymakers and civil society organisations jointly develop new AI applications while critically examining their implications for people and society. WUR’s ELSA Lab team works with the agri-food sector towards transparent, ethical and responsible use of data. Inspiring examples can be found at  https://ai4sfs.org/nl/innovaties.

For Wolfert the message is clear: “With WUR we have built an ecosystem of farmers, technology providers, researchers and policymakers across multiple projects. This ensures continuous digital innovation within the agri-food sector. By exchanging knowledge and experiences, the food system becomes smarter, more sustainable and more equitable.” 

WUR collaborates in the SmartAgriHubs Community Board with ILVO, Belgium; ATB Bremen, Germany;  CEMA, European Agricultural Machinery Association; COPA COGECA, European Association of Farmers and Agri-cooperatives; Schuttelaar & Partners; Anamob, Romania; and Walton Institute, Ireland.