The federal government could help spur the adoption of precision agriculture practices in a number of ways, including increased research funding and assistance to farmers for enhancing data analysis, the Government Accountability Office says.
A GAO assessment of precision ag issued Wednesday says the technology is only used by 27% of U.S. farms even though it has been available since the 1990s.
Precision ag technology ranges widely from remote sensing platforms on drones and robots, to in-ground sensors that monitor soil temperature and moisture, and targeted sprayer systems and automated weeders.
Use of the technology can increase farmer profits by reducing the use of fertilizer, pesticides and other crop inputs, which also can protect nearby waterways.
But wide-scale adoption of technology has been hindered by several factors, including the up-front cost, farmer concerns about sharing data, and a lack of standards that hinders the inoperability of equipment, GAO says.
“Precision agriculture technologies can be part of the solution to help the agricultural sector meet the increasing demands” globally for food, fuel and fiber, the report says.
According to 2023 USDA data analyzed by the GAO, more than 50% of farms in Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska and the Dakotas use the technology, the highest adoption rates in the country. In other ag states such as Texas, Oklahoma, Georgia and Florida, adoption rates are under 20%.
The report also says USDA and the National Science Foundation provided $192 million for precision ag research and development from 2017 through 2021, with funding peaking at $58 million in 2019 before declining to $40.8 million in 2021.
NSF provided the largest share of funding over the five-year period at $93 million.
The report offers several policy options for the federal government, state agencies and others to consider, including possible expansion of financial assistance to farmers and modification of program eligibility rules "to explicitly cover the acquisition and use of precision agriculture technologies."
The government could support the development of “analytical tools and models to quantify benefits and costs,” the report says. Farmers would have more confidence in the benefits of the technology if estimates of the benefits are data-driven and based on real-world experiences,” the report says.
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"Farmers may not be aware that current USDA programs could provide financial assistance in adopting and using precision agriculture technologies, in part because the programs are not specifically designed to support precision agriculture," the report notes.
Policymakers also may want to consider ways to help producers better understand the costs and benefits of various technologies, the report says, noting that existing data on farmer benefits is lacking.
"Some available studies indicate that adoption and use of precision agriculture technologies can help farmers increase profits and have the potential to increase societal benefits, such as improved environmental quality. However, the variability of farm conditions, such as soil type, makes it challenging to develop comparisons between farms and presents difficulties estimating benefits," the study says.
To encourage data sharing, the report suggests “developing a governance framework to manage and store ag data and its access.” But the report notes that farmers are concerned that data sharing could cost them a competitive advantage or that they will face more regulatory scrutiny as artificial intelligence is used more frequently to analyze data.
The report was submitted to the House and Senate Ag committees, the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee and the House Science, Space and Technology Committee.
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