Driving Grower Profitability with Precision Decisions

Markus Braaten , CCA

Trimble Ag Business Solutions

Manager of Agronomic Precision Services

Cropping System Context

Mission of AGRI-TREND

“Helping farmers allocate scarce resources to supply the world with a safe, reliable, profitable food supply in an environmentally sustainable

manner.”

Precision Farming Defined:

Precision farming (PA) or satellite farming or site specific crop management (SSCM) is a farming management concept based on observing, measuring and responding to inter and intra-field variability in crops. Crop variability typically has both a spatial and temporal component which makes statistical/computational treatments quite involved. The holy grail of precision agriculture research will be the ability to define a Decision Support System (DSS) for whole farm management with the goal of optimizing returns on inputs while preserving resources. The reality today is that seemingly simple concepts such the ability to define management zones, areas where different management practices will apply, for a single crop type on a single field over time are difficult to define…

Wikipedia (2013)

Macro Trends Influencing Precision Ag

An Increasing Yield Environment

532 buDavid Hula, Renwood Farms, VA – 2015

national corn yield champion and current

world record holder.

Total Uptake (lbs/A)

N 595.8

P2O5 271.3

K2O 718.2

S 79.8

An Increasing Yield Environment

This chart shows cost on a per-bushel basis. From 1990 -2006, cost per bushel were relatively flat a compared to costs

on a per-acre basis. Fertilizer costs per bushel increased an average of 1.4%, pesticide costs by 2.4%, and seed costs

by 2.9%. Since 2006, the increases have been much larger. Fertilizer costs per bushel increased an average of 5%,

pesticide costs by 4.6% and seed costs by 10.1%. As a result, costs per bushel have grown in recent years.

Source Illinois Farm Business Farm Management

It’s not enough to grow bushels…we need to grow profitable bushels…

Yield optimization for profit maximization

How Can Precision Ag Help?

Variability Exits…

Significant Variable Yield Potential Necessitates Variable Management

6421 3 5

Speaking CPUP

(Cost Per Unit Production)

Anticipated CPUP @ 90 bu/Ac

Do I have Variability?

Does the Variability Warrant

Variable Management?

CPUP 48 bu

73 bu

90 bu

-42 bu

-17 bu

0 bu

$5.18/bu

$3.41 bu

$2.76/bu

Red Zone

Yellow Zone

Green Zone

Field Average CPUP

$2.95/bu

Flat Rate Fertility with a 90 bu/Ac target…

Sampling by Zone

50 bu

70 bu

85 bu

90 bu

-2 bu

+3 bu

0 bu

0 bu

$3.88/bu

$3.01 bu

$2.85/bu

$2.76/bu

Zone 1

Zone 2

Zone 3

Zone 4

CPUP by Zone

VRT Fertility

acknowledging

variable yield

potential…

95 bu

-5 bu

$2.82/bu

Zone 5

Precision

+$7.36/Ac

Flat Rate

Mapping Profit

Understanding the nature of Spatial Variability associated with CPUP becomes the first step to defining grower ROI.

Bridging the Technology Gap

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