“Tech doesn’t fix a bad farmer – it makes the best farmer better” Kristian Møller, AG Precision, 2025

Imagine a guaranteed 70% reduction in chemical costs, a 20% increase in produce quality and therefore, the ability to make 35% more money than any other farmer growing the same crop – all from one machine. This is a situation many farmers wouldn’t hesitate to pass up, but in European farming systems, the use of technology in robotics and precision agriculture is already allowing these results to become reality, and not by growing more, but by growing smarter.

Now, precision agriculture isn’t anything new in Australia, and whilst Danish farmers are only just discovering what the term soil compaction means in their farming systems, technology such as variable rate application and drone mapping and spraying are already being successfully integrated into our farming systems, with impressive results. But what else is out there?

Recently, I travelled with a group of horticultural producers to Denmark and the Netherlands to explore exactly how ag-tech and precision agriculture is being used in farming systems to drive efficiency, sustainability and profitability. Whilst our farming systems do differ significantly, it quickly became apparent that many of the challenges faced by farmers were not too dissimilar, therefore presenting an opportunity to apply some of their systems and learnings here, in Australia.

Technology Driving Efficiency
In a time when input costs are high and resources are tight, maximising efficiency is key to allowing farmers to produce more with less. In Denmark, year-round rainfall often only allows for 30-minute spray windows, meaning farmers are commonly highly geared and making the best use of technology to get the job done as fast and effectively as possible.

One standout machine was the robotic sprayer I referred to at the beginning of the article. Its ability to spray specific weeds in crops not only allows for a significant saving in chemical use, but also improves the quality of produce, as paddocks are cleaner and weeds are only being targeted when necessary. Its ability to block daylight during image capture, instead, relying on strobe lights, allows weed detection cameras to function and maintain accuracy irrespective of the conditions around them

In Australia, with similar pressures of labour and input costs and time availability, the ability to reduce unnecessary applications, improve timeliness and free up staff for more highly skilled tasks through this type of technology can greatly contribute to the overall efficiency of farming systems.

Technology Driving Sustainability
While northern Europe has young and fertile soils when compared to Australia, farmers are under pressure to reduce chemical inputs, protect water quality, and meet strict regulatory requirements – all while staying productive and protecting their resource base.

In both vertical and glasshouse farms, circular farming systems are not only reducing waste in resources and quality of produce, but they also allow for year-round production with minimal environmental impact. Outside, in the paddock, year-on-year weed mapping through satellite and drone imagery is allowing farmers to predict weed patterns and manage these using strategic methods, such as increasing planting density in weed-prone areas.

In Australia, with tighter regulations on chemical use and even the rising threat of chemical deregistration, being able to use a more targeted approach to weed control not only minimises chemical usage but presents the opportunity to use acid-based alternatives that are compliant with both conventional and organic production systems.

Sustainability isn’t just about compliance, it’s about resilience too, and as consumer expectations and market standards evolve, using technology to record and monitor inputs, predict yields and being able to prove your commitment to sustainability offers a huge opportunity for market access and growth for Australian farmers.

Technology Driving Profitability
Like many Australian farmers, those in Denmark and the Netherlands face competition from countries with cheaper labour and lower production costs. As competing on price alone isn’t viable, farmers are looking within their farming systems and using technology to help them manage costs and drive saleable yield.

In Denmark, there has been encouragement for open-source technology, which lowers the barrier to entry, encourages collaboration and allows for the customisation of technology, making it cheaper to adopt, easier to integrate, and encouraing innovation among farmers. Glass houses in the Netherlands have integrated digital labour management systems which allows them to measure and trace produce quality and harvest performance back to the individual worker.

For Australian farmers, technology can directly support better margins through reducing input costs, improving operating efficiencies and increasing saleable yield, as well as quality and consistency. When looking beyond the farm gate, technology will also be a lever through which to access market premiums, allowing for better product traceability and transparency. In the case of the robotic sprayer, the first farmer to ever buy it didn’t go public that they were using it for three years so as to protect their competitive advantage.

Key Learnings from Europe

1. A collaborative culture – farmers in Europe have a strong focus on working and standing together, whether that’s through being part of a co-operative, or maintaining a competitive balance to ensure that all farmers have the opportunity to grow profitable crops.
2. Licence to produce – technology allows farmers to focus on, measure and most importantly, prove, what’s being done on every square meter of their farm, from an environmental and operational perspective. This provides a competitive advantage for marketing.
3. Problem solving – technology exists to solve problems. How it is used within the business determines the effectiveness of its results. It works best when used as part of the business strategy – not just as an add-on in isolation.
4. The tech exists – it’s there and farmers are ready to use it, so long as the path to adoption is simple, adaptable and farmer-friendly. Open-source technology is giving farmers the tools to develop innovation for themselves.

While it is clear that Australia and northern Europe operate in very different environments, we share many of the challenges and opportunities faced by farmers in both regions. The potential for technology adoption in Australian farming systems exists and is readily available for the uptake. Europe is demonstrating what is possible, the next step is making it work practically and profitably for us in Australia.