Ep. 56: Ag Tech Trends to Watch for in 2023 with Jeremy Wilson
Imagine tracing a harvested kernel of corn from inside an elevator grain bin back to its origin as a seed bought from your ag retailer.
It’s a concept that, just a few years ago, some might have scoffed at. But for Jeremy Wilson, he made it happen on his farm; and for him, projects like this are all about making a grower’s life easier.
As an Illinois grain farmer, self-proclaimed precision ag evangelist, and more professionally, the executive vice president and chief operating officer of AgGateway, Jeremy is passionate about bringing improved interoperability through data to all levels of agriculture. And rightfully so, he has a few opinions about what ag tech trends will be crucial in the near future.
One of Jeremy’s top ag tech trends to watch for in 2023…
Autonomy
“We’re going to start seeing hints of autonomy impacting rural America,” says Jeremy. Even though driverless equipment might not yet be ready for mainstream, Jeremy predicts that the autonomous vehicle space will have many different entry levels into agriculture.
Likening autonomy’s emergence to auto-steering products in years past, Jeremy illustrates the at-first dismissal of new technology is justified. What might have seemed far-fetched at the time is now a reality.
“Show me a grower today farming more than 600 acres that doesn’t have an auto steer system. It’s just not possible,” states Jeremy. “I see the same thing happening with autonomy, and growers are going to step in at different levels.”
As a farmer, Jeremy can dream up his ideal application of autonomous farming. It includes starting with UAV chemical application, dispatched through weed-identifying remote imagery.
And the ultimate next step – small autonomous implements operating in a swarm. Think of four small tractors running autonomously with four-row planters. “One day, I’ll probably have a mobile device that sits in my tractor, and it keeps an eye on them for me while I’m in there,” visions Jeremy.
Outside of his future “farming utopia,” it’s no surprise that Jeremy says autonomy is a piece of precision ag technology he’s the most excited about.
“I think that autonomy and a few other pieces of technology will empower younger generations to have the lifestyle they want and yet still be a farmer,” says Jeremy. “That might be the one thing we see that changes the most.”
Here’s a glance at this episode:
[01:03] Jeremy shares his background in precision agriculture.
[04:04] Jeremy shares the mission of AgGateway.
[06:26] Discussing traceability, Jeremy shares a recent proof of concept project he completed successfully - tracking a kernel of corn from the field all the way to the elevator grain bin.
[08:39] Jeremy explains the importance of collaboration between ag tech companies for grower interoperability.
[11:31] Jeremy shares three top ag tech trends he thinks are noteworthy.
[15:43] Jeremy shares an area where artificial intelligence and machine learning may play a critical role in crop production.
[17:53] Jeremy illustrates his ideal application of autonomous vehicles.
[21:02] Discussing how precision ag technology has changed over the last 25 years, Jeremy explains his optimism for future generations of farmers.
[23:51] Jeremy leaves with the one piece of technology he’s most excited for and advice for growers.
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Bio
Jeremy was raised on a family farm near Olney, Illinois, where he operates an 800-acre grain farm with his family. He graduated from Wabash Valley Jr. College with an Associate of Applied Science degree in Agriculture Production and received his Bachelor of Science in Business Management from Eastern Illinois University in May of 1995. He started his working career with a Crop Insurance Company as a loss adjuster in 1995 then went to work for Wabash Valley Service Company as a crop specialist in 1999. Then in July 2006 accepted the position as Technology Specialist for Crop IMS, an information management, scouting, and technology company based in south central Illinois. Jeremy joined AgGateway as EVP/COO in January of 2022.
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