Automation and precision farming bode ill for jobs in SA agriculture but are crucial for food security

Automation and precision farming bode ill for jobs in SA agriculture but are crucial for food security

Sean Sundberg and Chase Schapansky of US company Guss stand by the group’s Global Unmanned Spray System at the Nampo grounds near Bothaville. (Photo: Supplied) In the US, the rise of the tractor between 1910 and 1960 replaced an estimated 24 million draught animals, according to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization. Now, more than a century after the tractor first gained traction, automation and digitisation threaten to put many agricultural workers out to pasture.

In a recent blog post on this issue, Aaron Smith, a professor of agricultural economics at the University of California, phrases it this way: A […]

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.