EO4 Cultivar Earth observation (EO) can provide timely field-scale
crop observations into the high value Latin American
agricultural market. However, whilst there are sources
of free and commercial satellite imagery, there isn’t
the capability to process and rapidly deliver the
necessary crop observation data to growers and
advisory services in Latin America. EO4cultivar
addresses this gap. Working with commercial and
government stakeholders in Colombia, Peru and
Paraguay EO4cultivar is developing a subscription
service called Agri-track; a suite of crop monitoring
and forecasting products.
Near real-time metrics for use in crop production,
agronomy and business intelligence are
automatically generated at field scale. This includes
metrics for predicting and monitoring growth stage,
harvest timing and yield potential for growing
conditions and identifying crop health problems. This
information might be for individual fields, multiple
farms, regional or national areas and reflects the
demand for timely decision support tools to improve
crop production, strategic analysis, sustainable
farming practices and risk management.
Case studies provide new information describing
agricultural landscapes. Web-based maps
enable local stakeholders to view the ecosystems
services provided by land (e.g. water regulation).
Opportunities for nature-based land management
interventions to support sustainable agricultural
production and biodiversity conservation are
identified.
Three fully funded PhDs at UK Universities provide
capacity building for Latin American students from
partner countries to develop their remote sensing
skills and generate new knowledge from earth
observation satellites.
Project objectives:
• Help key growers in Peru and Colombia to
improve yield.
• Provision of crop information services to make
the supply chain more resilient.
• Improve the way Peru and Colombia undertake
sustainable farming practices.
• Capacity building and continued innovation
from EO by supporting 3 PhDs. To make a positive contribution towards
sustainable food production systems and the
implementation of resilient agricultural practices.
-To increase productivity and manage risk in
agricultural supply chains.
-To support inclusive and sustainable economic
growth in target agricultural sectors.
-To help maintain ecosystems and ensure
smallholder farmers benefit from project activities