This week at Expo AgriTech 2024 in Malaga, the Eurecat technology centre is presenting innovative technologies in robotics, artificial intelligence, biotechnology and sustainability to address the agricultural industry’s challenges.

The agricultural sector has to deal with “significant issues including climate change, labour shortages and the need to make farming methods more sustainable,” points out Ignacio de la Vega, director of Eurecat Innova Malaga. “By bringing in state-of-the-art technologies we seek to enhance the productivity, efficiency and sustainability of agricultural enterprises.”

Eurecat is showcasing land robots equipped with modular tools which enable them to autonomously carry out agricultural tasks in the fields such as crop spraying, crop monitoring, fruit analysis and product transport, giving farmers greater control over the jobs performed.

This advanced management of the robot fleet is conducted through the SOMAgro platform, a project worked on with Grupo Saltó which optimises task allocation and enables them to be dynamically rescheduled to cope with unforeseen events. The platform additionally makes it possible to reduce the size and weight of the equipment currently in use and foster electrification in this sector.

Eurecat is also displaying in Malaga solutions for improved decision-making and efficiency in resource use in agricultural management including a state-of-the-art drone for monitoring crops in real time and applying plant protection treatments.

Its booth further hosts a greenhouse equipped with an agrovoltaic system featuring organic, flexible and semi-transparent photovoltaic modules using printed electronics with materials specifically selected to ensure complementary light absorption for plant growth and which have been rolled out as part of the European SYNATRA project.

In viticulture management, Eurecat has unveiled an innovative smart platform with digital tools for precision wine-making to power more sustainable vineyard management and the resilience of this crop to climate change.

The combination of technologies such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, remote sensing, drones, satellite Earth observation services and in-field sensors enables the VitiGEOSS solution to deliver useful forecasts, recommendations and indicators designed to enhance agricultural management and sustainability.