What the future holds for precision farming kit – Farm Contractor & Large Scale Farmer

The Omnia system has been developed to give costings across the full rotation, as well as providing the tools to collect as applied data and create variable-rate seed, fertiliser and spray maps for fields.

“By fully using the technology available, growers can avoid doing things in isolation, and reduce the reliance on paper-based systems, which can lead to increased levels of administration and mistakes,” Hutchinsons’ Lewis McKerrow says.

The combination of data sets available within the Omnia system enables growers to monitor fields, or areas of a field, across a full rotation, showing where yields may have flagged.

“This enables decisions to be made, such as putting areas of a field into Sustainable Farming Incentive [SFI] agreements and focusing inputs on more productive areas of the farm,” he adds.

“The data collected within Omnia can also be used to show compliance, whether that’s within SFI or another stewardship agreement, or to show that the correct amount of chemical or manure has been applied and at the correct time.”

He notes the benefits of Omnia, and data collection in general, will become more pronounced as machines become more precise.

“Combined with the live costings, growers would be able to base spray applications on weed maps, plant growth regulators on the development on the crop and fertiliser or manure applications on the exact nutrient requirements for the best possible yields.”