Rural Connectivity

Broadband Coming To A Field Near You? Data BRIDGE Act Would Bring Connectivity To The Farm

Fri, 15 Aug 2025 14:13:43 GMT

On Tuesday, Republican Congresswoman Erin Houchin (IN-09) introduced bipartisan legislation, H.R. 4950 – the Data BRIDGE Act – to improve how the FCC’s broadband map accounts for agricultural lands.

Today, barns and other farming structures located across the rural countryside are included in the FCC’s broadband map, but the surrounding cropland, pastures, and acreage where farming happens are not.

The Data BRIDGE Act directs the FCC to integrate USDA’s existing cultivated land data layer into its broadband map, with no new cost or mandates, ensuring federal broadband funding “reaches the fields that power America’s food supply.”

Republican Congresswoman Erin Houchin (Ind.-09)

(Photo Credit Nate Payne)

“Our farmers depend on reliable broadband to stay competitive in a modern economy,” writes Houchin in a statement to Farm Journal. “The Data BRIDGE Act is a commonsense, low-cost solution that ensures federal broadband investments actually reach the fields, pastures and production areas where work happens. I have fought for years to expand rural broadband, and this bill is another important step toward closing the connectivity gap for our farm families and rural communities.”

Here is a link to the proposed bill at Congress.gov. The bill has been referred to the House Energy and Commerce Committee. It would need to be voted on and passed by both the House and the Senate before making its way to President Donald Trump’s desk. The president could then veto the bill or sign it into law.

The bill currently has seven cosponsors, including four House Democrats and three Republicans.

Contact your local Congressional Representative and ask them to support H.R. 4950 if you would like the bill to become U.S. law.

Your Next Read: Analyst Flags Potential Overshoot in Corn Yield Estimate And Why It Matters

Farm Drone News: AgEagle Multispectral Sensor, GPS Satellite Launched and Rantizo Spins Off Software

Tue, 12 Aug 2025 18:08:05 GMT

AgEagle Aerial Systems Unveils New RedEdge-P Green Camera

(AgEagle Aerial Systems)

AgEagle Aerial Systems announces the launch of its new RedEdge-P Green, a multispectral camera designed to enable precision agriculture from planting to harvest.

AgEagle says farmers that use the new sensor payload can achieve higher yields through quicker interventions both early on and late in the crop cycle. Operators can reduce fertilizer and irrigation inputs and engage in smart harvesting techniques using optimized indices and targeted indices like the Plant Senescence Reflectance Index (PSRI).

Available as a standalone camera or in paired configurations with the original RedEdge-P and the RedEdge-P Blue, users can leverage up to 15 noise-resistant, data-rich spectral bands essential for large-area precision agriculture.

The RedEdge-P Green camera is NDAA-compliant and integrates with multiple drone platforms. Each camera kit includes a Calibrated Reflectance Panel (CRP) and a Downwelling Light Sensor (DLS2) for radiometric calibration.

Production of the RedEdge-P Green camera is underway, and the first units are expected to ship this week. For more information about the RedEdge-P Green visit ageagle.com.

Dutch Startup Launches Largest GPS Network for Drones, Tractors

(Lindsey Pound, iStock)

FreshMiners, a Netherlands-based IOT firm, launched a GPS service that enables accurate positioning for agriculture, construction and drone navigation, according to AgriMarketing.com.

AgriMarketing.com writes that the Dutch company is launching a service for extra-accurate GPS. It is intended for drone pilots, farmers and others. With this new technology, users can correct their GPS positions down to the centimeter. Real-time correction signals are sent to the user’s GPS receiver via a global network of base stations. This correction is essential for applications in agriculture, land surveying and drone navigation, among other things.

A subscription gives users access to the GEODNET network, which, with more than 19,000 base stations in over 140 countries, is now reportedly the largest RTK network in the world.

Read more at AgriMarketing.com.

Missouri Doctoral Student Says Drones Are Fine Tool for Crop Scouting

(Photo by Abbie Lankitus)

Researchers at the University of Missouri have discovered a mix of drones and AI can help farmers measure the health of their corn more efficiently.

Instead of relying on handheld devices, which are slow and impractical for larger fields, the researchers surveyed corn fields in mid-Missouri using drones equipped with special cameras to capture images and data.

After combining the drone images with soil data, the Mizzou researchers used a type of AI known as machine learning to quickly predict the chlorophyll content in the corn leaves of the entire field with great accuracy.

The study was led by Fengkai Tian (pictured above), a Mizzou doctoral student who works in the lab of Jianfeng Zhou, an associate professor in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources.

Read more from the University of Missouri here.

Rantizo Spin-Off American Autonomy Inc. Says It Can Close the Spray Drone Data Loop

Rantizo is now connected with the John Deere Operations Center through John Deere API services.

(Rantizo)

Ground rig as-applied data has been around for decades, and it comes in handy when you’re tabulating your end of year scorecard to find out which treatments boosted yields and where a spray might have fallen short.

Yet even though spray drones treated over 10 million crop acres in 2024 alone, there’s still a gap that exists in capturing that data and integrating it into your farm management software.

Former Rantizo CEO Mariah Scott, who is now the CEO of a spinoff operation dubbed American Autonomy Inc., says her new outfit’s AcreConnect platform can help close that gap with API connections into John Deere’s Operations Center and more major FMIS platforms.

“We talk to farmers about getting that complete view of your field management, by closing the loop so you understand what’s effective or what’s not,” Scott says. “Most of the farmers we talk to use spray drones and a ground sprayer, and that (as-applied) data from the sprayer goes right into their FMIS account, but with the spray drone it doesn’t always work like that.”

The deal to divest the spray drone operations side of the business was quietly announced on Aug. 1. The Rantizo name, the startup is a pioneering spray drone service provider, still lives on, but now there’s a clean break between the spraying operations and the software on the back end that enables it.

Learn more about the Rantizo-American Autonomy Spinoff over at PRNewswire.

Your Next Read: Southern Rust Has Infected Iowa Corn in ‘Likely Every County’

CNH, Starlink Announce Satellite Connectivity Expansion To Case IH And New Holland Machines

Thu, 15 May 2025 20:50:53 GMT

CNH has an agreement in place with Starlink, a subsidiary of SpaceX, to bring industry-leading satellite connectivity to farmers.

The company says this new collaboration will provide customers of Case IH, New Holland and STEYR, with robust high-speed connectivity – further unlocking the benefits of a fully connected fleet – even in the most remote rural locations around the world.

“We’re thrilled to offer our customers access to industry-leading satellite connectivity, enabling them to maximize the potential of our full suite of precision technology in even the most challenging rural environments,” said Stefano Pampalone, Agriculture Chief Commercial Officer at CNH.

(CNH Industrial)

Starlink’s Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO) satellite network offers reliable, low-latency internet. This enables today’s smart machines to communicate and coordinate efficiently , enhancing productivity. The connectivity module will seamlessly integrate with CNH’s FieldOps digital platform, giving farmers visibility of their machines and providing data from anywhere, anytime. It also enables greater data streaming capabilities by keeping farm management devices consistently connected, regardless of location.

CNH says this collaboration underscores it’s ongoing commitment to equipping farmers with reliable, tailored solutions that meet the unique demands of agriculture, while amplifying the capabilities of precision technology.

You can read the full announcement here.

Carbon Robotics adds autonomous tractor solution

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 19:26:15 GMT

In a move to help growers maximize equipment and address labor shortages, Carbon Robotics launched its Carbon AutoTractor, an autonomous solution installed on existing tractors.

Carbon Robotics’ founder and CEO Paul Mikesell says its Carbon AI will power remotely monitored tractors to help specialty crop growers deploy laser weeders for almost around-the-clock production.

“With LaserWeeder, farmers want to run them as much as they possibly can, but it’s hard to find labor,” he told The Packer. “It’s really hard to find labor to do the tractor driving. It’s hard to find labor to do these late midnight shifts. It’s hard to find people to do all the different tasks you want to do with the tractors.”

The Carbon AutoTractor features two core components: the Carbon Autonomy Kit and the Remote Operations Control Center. Mikesell said operators in ROCC handle any obstructions through monitored autonomy and take over the autonomy system, so production continues. He said growers, then, don’t have to worry whether an autonomous task gets completed.

“They’re trained in using Carbon Auto Tractor,” he said. “They know how to do the functions that the farmer wants to do in the field. And then, whenever there’s something that comes up, they can literally change drive the tractor remotely, and get through whatever obstacle it is, and then keep moving.”

Mikesell said the Carbon Auto Tractor will currently work for LaserWeeder tasks, ground prep such as mulching, mowing, discing and more, but there are plans to expand its capabilities in the future.

The Carbon Autonomy Kit is initially compatible with John Deere 6R and 8R Series tractors, requiring no permanent modifications and installation completed in less than 24 hours. Once installed, tractors can toggle between autonomous and manual operation as needed.

“It bolts on and then that you plug into the harness in the inside on the inside cab, and there’s a box that mounts on the window that you can turn it on and off,” Mikesell said.

The Carbon AutoTractor system includes RTK-accurate GPS, 360-degree cameras and radar-based safety sensors, as well asphysical, remote and mobile e-stops connected via a high-speed, low-latency satellite link.

“We have better visibility from the cameras on the roof than you do from the inside the cabin,” Mikesell said.

And for those growers who might be reluctant to go to an autonomous tractor, Mikesell said the Carbon AutoTractor is designed to help growers better deploy farm labor where it’s needed most.

“You want somebody there to inspect or notice problems with your irrigation or things of that nature. You’ll still want to have those people around, but the point is that they don’t have to spend all that time driving up and down the rows to do the simple task,” he said. “They can then spend their time focusing on figuring out where or if there’s issues and how to address other problems and it relieves the constant need to be driving the tractor all the time.”

Mikesell said this solution also offers growers the option to deploy tractors at night for weeding or when the nighttime temperatures are cooler. This also helps growers maximize return on investment by being able to run the autonomous solution all the time, he said.

“We found that lot of people want to run their LaserWeeder 24/7 because they get a really good ROI or more crops they can put it under, but they just can’t find the operators to run it 24/7,” he told The Packer. “If you can run it, 24/7, you can double the hours in a typical season and you can get that tool doing everything you need it to.”

Carbon Robotics said the autonomous solution works seamlessly with its LaserWeeder, automatically adjusting speed to optimize weeding performance based on weed type, size and density, which can boost coverage by up to 20% compared to manually operated systems.

Brandon Munn, farm manager with Columbia Basin Onion, has worked with the Carbon Robotics team on this autonomous solution.

“With many of our tractors and LaserWeeders running autonomously with Carbon AutoTractor, we’re able to operate more hours, address labor challenges and make night shifts safer and more reliable,” Munn said in a news release. “This isn’t just automation; it’s a practical solution that’s fundamentally changing how we farm.”

Additional Details Come In On AutoTractor
Farm Journal talked with CEO Paul Mikesell to see what else we could learn about the system and what makes it different from other tractor autonomy kits on the market. Here’s a handful of bullet points breaking down what we uncovered:

Don’t Call It A Retrofit - Because the AutoTractor kit doesn’t effectively alter or change anything mechanically on the tractor itself, Mikesell says he prefers to refer to it as a “augmentation kit.”
Satellite Connectivity Changed The Game - When Mikesell and his team started this project back in 2023, connectivity was a limiting factor in enabling a tractor to safely operate with complete autonomy. That is no longer a limiting factor as developments in the stratosphere like SpaceX’s StarLink and Intellsat’s low earth orbit constellations have provided the necessary latency and bandwidth to make driver-less operation safe and viable.
Pricing Is Still TBD - Pressed on how much the system will cost from an up-front investment standpoint, Mikesell told us that “we’re still fine tuning that price.”
Expect An Hourly Fee - Mikesell did confirm that the technology will carry a per-hour fee. He says that fee will track closely with what the user would pay a local machine operator to run the tractor. That could mean a per-hour fee anywhere from $15 in the Midwest to upwards of $25 per hour in high-wage markets like California and Washington. “We’re trying to save you money by not having to worry about travel time out to the fields. There’s no lunch break. You don’t have to worry about paying overtime. This machine will do as many double shifts as you want, and we’re still employing people to do all the monitoring. So we have a very skilled and qualified group of people that are doing all the monitoring. So that’s kind of the model: we charge you per hour to run this machine for you and we’ll work with you on what jobs you want done and how you want it done and make sure that everything is handled appropriately.”
Remote Operators With Tractor Experience - Mikesell says his remote operators that task and oversee the driverless tractors for farmers get a crash course in how tractors are used on your typical farm. “Just being out there in the field long enough to understand the size of things that are around you and just kind of what a field looks like and how things are laid out, makes a huge difference when you’re trying to drive remotely,” says Mikesell. “Even though you have a better view driving remotely, because you have a nice 360 degree view off the roof, having some concept and understanding about the size of things and kind of what everything looks like helps quite a bit.”

Your Next Read: Using tech to target food safety threats

John Deere-Starlink Satellite Service Available Now, New High-Speed Disk Series Debuts

Tue, 14 Jan 2025 14:28:40 GMT

John Deere announced the release of JDLink Boost, a satellite connectivity solution designed to work in fields with little to no cellular coverage, and a new high speed disk tillage solution.

The new JDLink Boost kit supports the partnership between John Deere and Starlink by SpaceX network.

Deere reps say JDLink Boost will benefit farmers operating in fields where cellular coverage is limited or unreliable by providing a secure and faster connection along with real-time access to machine and agronomic data. This improved connectivity enables more timely decision-making regarding irrigation, fertilization, pest control and harvesting.

You can read more about JDLink Boost here. The news release does not detail how the new service will be priced. Reach out to you local John Deere dealer for more information.

New High-Speed Disk Series

John Deere announced a new lineup of high-speed disks, a dual-season tool that it says provides excellent field finish and residue management. It also comes autonomy ready from the factory, Deere says.

(Steve Dolan )

Deere’s new high-speed disk line replaces the largest models from the 2680H series, according to a company press release. Available in widths ranging from 25’ to 45’, Deere says there is a disk size that fits nearly any tractor and farm.

The new high-speed disk line offers improved residue flow, helping reduce plugging in tough tillage conditions such as high field moisture or high residue situations. In the new model, an additional 4” was added between the disk and the finishing basket, which helps provide better overall residue flow.

The high-speed disks come autonomy ready in-base from the factory, and are equipped from the factory with a receiver mast, harnessing, lighting package and TruSet.

Visit your local John Deere dealer or deere.com for information on the full line of tillage equipment.

A New GPS Datum is Coming: What It Means for Farmers

Tue, 24 Sep 2024 15:00:00 GMT

Farmers ought to be aware that 2025 could be the last year they are able to use A-B lines and field boundaries recorded in season’s past.

According to The Ohio State University professor Dr. John Fulton, there is a new ag “datum” or set of reference point measurements, coming to GPS systems in 2026.

“So, what’s happening is they’re basically redefining a datum, which is basically – if you think very simply – a mathematical model of the earth that enables us to calculate our position down here from the satellites,” Fulton says. “And so, they’re making a change to that datum (in 2026). What does that mean for users? Well, if I have predefined A-B lines or if I have boundaries in my fields, when that new datum gets executed, it will likely shift those about three and a half feet.”

NOAA’s National Ocean Service defines a GPS datum as such: “A GPS datum, or geodetic datum, is a coordinate system that serves as a starting point for creating maps and surveys. It’s a parameter in a geographic coordinate system (GCS) that defines the model used to represent the Earth’s surface and its position relative to the surface.”

Fulton says this datum shift will benefit farmers by increasing the general accuracy of positioning data.

But it could also create more work for farmers, especially farmers with large fleets and many fields, because the datum shift will require adjustments to existing mapping and guidance systems. Autonomous equipment will also operate off the new datum, Fulton says.

Having worked alongside several major farm machinery OEMs and precision technology firms – Ohio State has the Land-Grant system’s only on-campus Trimble lab, and his department has close ties with Case-IH and several other equipment and technology companies – Fulton is confident that iron and technology providers will be ready.

“Everyone’s aware this is coming; we’re just encouraging them to have solutions in hand for when it goes live,” Fulton states.

John Deere representatives reached out to Farm Journal with the following statement on the GPS datum shift: The John Deere StarFire Network does not utilize the datums referenced in this article, and this change will not impact customers using StarFire receivers and correction solutions, including SF1, SF3, SF-RTK, and Radio RTK.

Farmers and operators can prepare for the datum shift in several ways:

Assess Connectivity: Evaluate current connectivity and signal strength on your farm. Keep in mind that robust connectivity is needed for autonomous equipment.
Update Equipment: When considering new machinery, prioritize equipment that is marketed as “autonomy ready.” Those machines will likely be new datum compatible right away.
Remapping Fields: Unless precision is not a concern in your operation, all signs point to you needing to re-map fields. This may also include recalibrating guidance systems and ensuring all machinery is compatible with the new positioning standards.

Dr. Fulton is a professor and extension specialist with The Ohio State Universities’ Department of Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering (FABE). He is a respected authority on precision farming technology and research alongside fellow OSU FABE professor and department chair, Dr. Scott Shearer.

Your Next Read: Trump Threatens 200% Tariff If Deere Moves Manufacturing to Mexico

Meet AGwagon: The American Truck Built By Farmers, For Farmers

Fri, 20 Sep 2024 21:35:00 GMT

There are many distinct varieties of trucks — fire trucks, garbage trucks, tow trucks and cement trucks, for example — but oddly enough, there has never been a pickup truck 100% purposely-built for farmers and ranchers, until now.

Certified Agriculture Dealerships (CAD) has teamed up with Fox Factory Performance Vehicles to create AGwagon pickup truck aftermarket kits. The kits convert off-the-factory-line trucks into rugged and tough, back 40 devouring, farm equipment hauling beasts.

Before the AGwagon, most farmers upgraded and ruggedized trucks with cash out-of-pocket. That can get expensive. Original equipment manufacturer-installed front ends, for example, are not built to withstand the pounding that driving fields and hauling equipment and other heavy loads everyday places on a pickup. Many farmers end up replacing a farm truck’s worn out front end every other year or so, according to CAD reps.

AGwagon offers Ultra HD front bumper with winch mount and grille protection, along with premium fog lights and a front bumper light cannon upgrade.

(Matthew J. Grassi)

Now, farmers can finance and order a purposely built AGwagon through CAD’s 200-plus dealer network, and it shows up ready to take an absolute pounding from day one, from the beefed up front end to the ultra-heavy-duty back bumper.

There are several pre-configured options and features to choose from, starting at $30,000 for a basic tier of upgrades and topping out at around $50,000 for the top-of-the-line package. Farmers can also order ala carte to pick and choose the features that best fit their intended use.

The kits are brand agnostic (it just needs to be a new domestic truck and over half a ton) and assembled in the USA at Fox Factories’ Trussville, Ala., plant.

The AGwagon kits were built off feedback from a panel of 14 farmers and ranchers. The features that made the final cut are mainly centered around making trucks more durable and rugged, as well as adding in high performance and comfort features. Notably, there is an option to install a ruggedized Starlink Internet terminal on top of the cab for on-the-go connectivity, and there is an integrated two-way radio system available.

“What CAD and Fox Factory were able to do with AGwagon is what I personally don’t see enough of in the ag sector, and that is going to the farmers first, and to the ranchers first, and finding out from them what they need for a pickup truck to be more functional,” says farmer Jeff O’Connor.

O’Connor raises soybeans in northeast Illinois (Kankakee to be exact) and he participated in the farmer panel. Having reviewed the first AGwagon prototype, O’Connor likes the stepped-up durability, internet connectivity and LED lighting add-ons that will help farmers working long days.

“I’ve still got a 79-year-old dad — who’s soon to be 80 — helping me,” O’Connor states. “I’m upgrading lights in our shed just so it has better lighting for safety. You hate to lose skilled labor because they can’t see where their feet are going. So I am glad to see they really made [lighting] a major, major part of the truck and its ability to serve the operator.”

CAD hosted an unveiling of its prototype model, built onto a Ford Super Duty pickup, in Columbus, Ohio, last week. Speaking to reporters, CEO Pat Driscoll highlighted how the company worked alongside farmers to bring their feedback to life.

“They said ‘give me a heavy-duty front end that will hold up for years’, and that’s what we have here,” he says. “Easy bed access was also at the top of the list. That’s why you see the fold-away steps on the side, because none of us are getting younger and we need a little help. One of the other things they wanted was high intensity, 360-degree LED lighting because work doesn’t stop when it’s dark. This truck gives you 360-degrees of LED lighting for as long as you need it.”

For those curious, the AGwagon name was picked because the truck “captures the defining characteristics of the original AGwagon aerial application plane — reliability, longevity and capability,” Driscoll says.

Special financing is available, and all AGwagons include a three-year, 36,000-mile warranty on all installed components. Learn more about the AGwagon’s features and multiple upgrade packages at agwagon.com .

The AGwagon will only be available from Certified Agriculture Dealerships. To locate your nearest CAD, head over to AgTruckTrader.com .

Your Next Read: Purdue Study Shows Grain Entrapments Decrease By 35% Since 2022

Case IH Unlocks Fee-Free Technology Subscriptions, Launches Mobile App And Expands APIs

Wed, 21 Aug 2024 12:01:00 GMT

Case IH is launching a series of technology initiatives that the manufacturer says places the farmer user-experience at the forefront.

Case IH’s all-new FieldOps™ mobile and web application enables farmers to connect, view and manage their operations remotely.
Expanded API integrations allow farmers to connect with third party providers and manage mixed fleets.
Connectivity Included eliminates subscriptions on new qualifying equipment (purchased after October 1, 2024)
Precision Technology Packages pledge to simplify the aftermarket technology purchase experience for farmers.

Case IH FieldOps Is Now Live in App Stores

The all-new Case IH FieldOps web and mobile app is available now for download in the Apple Store and Google Play Store.

Case IH says FieldOps seamlessly connects and integrates agronomic insights and machine performance data, providing farmers with a comprehensive, real-time overview of their operations.

“Launching FieldOps gives us the opportunity to provide solutions for three main challenges farmers face every day: operation logistics, data management, and mobile access to information,” said Kendal Quandahl, precision technology segment lead, Case IH.

Key features include:

See all aspects of the primary Pro 1200 display using Remote Display Viewing through an upgraded mobile app – including external AV and backup cameras, with pinch-to-zoom and horizontal and vertical orientation for simplified operator and dealer support.
View and track machinery usage, fuel consumption, and performance with continuous, real-time updates, ensuring optimal operational efficiency, labor management and maintenance scheduling.
Customize views based on what’s most important: mute notifications, set alarms and adjust settings for each machine; create machine parameter favorites by machine or machine type; enable dark or light mode.
Send and receive agronomic data from machines while they are operating (e.g. guidance lines, as applied maps, etc.).

Brandon Hunt, a cash crop and small grain farmer from Southwest Kentucky, was among the Case IH customers who provided input on the development of FieldOps.

“FieldOps not only has agronomic data and yield data, but now we have the ability to control and influence the iron side. Technology and iron are in one area and on one device,” said Hunt. “The layout of the app is user friendly. It can funnel all your data and you can remote monitor into a tractor to see exactly what’s going on.”

FieldOps offers a consistent interface across mobile devices and web browsers, ensuring ease of use for farmers on the go. FieldOps integrates with CNH brands and third parties and is a one-stop location for Case IH data.

Case IH Expands API Partnerships

As the digital landscape continues to evolve, Case IH is expanding its API partnerships, which today the company says totals more than 40 providers.

This gives Case IH customers easier access to their agronomic and operational data, eliminates hurdles navigating within digital platforms, and ultimately, increases farmer productivity.

Case IH Launches Connectivity Included Initiative

Case IH is introducing Connectivity Included, which removes subscription fees from Case IH technology for qualifying machines built and purchased after October 1, 2024.

Case IH says this new initiative ensures that once a customer purchases equipment, on-board technology is available for the life of the modem. With Connectivity Included, farmers can move forward without ongoing technology subscription costs.

“Connectivity Included represents our commitment to supporting tech throughout the lifecycle of the equipment,” says Quandahl. “By eliminating most subscription fees, farmers can be assured they not only own the iron but also the tech for as long as they have the machine.”

With Connectivity Included, operators gain access to the following:

Agronomic data
Machine data and telematics
Proactive dealer support

Customers who wish to activate the Connectivity Included feature on existing machines with PCM or PCMF modems also can do so for a one-time fee by contacting their dealer.

Case IH Precision Technology Packages Simplify Add-Ons

Case IH Precision Tech Packages are available for farmers that wish to outfit existing machines with precision technology tools. This includes aftermarket kits offering advanced auto-guidance, in-cab displays, ISOBUS, and connectivity, plus the option to bundle more advanced technologies.

Farmers can choose between two package options – Core and Advanced – across a variety of equipment, according to Case-IH

For more information on the launch of Case IH FieldOps, please visit the website.

Roadmap to Connectivity: 5G Integrations, Cloud Uplinks to Enable Smart Farming Technologies

Thu, 13 Jun 2024 13:07:04 GMT

Farmers today have an abundance of technologies to sort through that can help them be more efficient, grow more sustainably, and to collect, visualize, and analyze all the data to prove it.

To fully unlock the capabilities offered by many of these advanced technologies like sub-inch guidance, real-time yield mapping, and fully autonomous farm equipment, however, a robust internet signal locked onto each machine, implement, and connected sensor is a prerequisite.

In areas with solid cellular coverage, those farmers are already in a good spot. But what about the fields where fast and reliable coverage hasn’t materialized yet?

To further illustrate, a recent study released by the University of Nebraska-Lincoln shows that only 26% of Nebraskans living on a farm report having very dependable internet. A 2023 USDA study found that 55% of farms in the Corn Husker state use precision ag practices (second highest adoption rate in the nation, behind only North Dakota) to manage crops or livestock.

Those farmers need reliable and fast internet to realize the full potential of the ag tech adoption they’ve invested time and resources in.

It’s an issue that needs sorted, and quickly, if ag tech adoption is ever going to reach its full ceiling of potential.

Who is working to solve the problem?

Equipment manufacturers have taken note that coverage gaps do exist. Rather than waiting for cellular network build out to further penetrate the heartland, satellite providers are being tapped for partnerships.

First came the much-hyped John Deere-Starlink tie up. Then a couple months later CNH and Intelsat announced a deal to bring Intelsat’s network of LEO and GEO satellite constellations into the farm equipment connectivity fray.

You may recognize the name Intelsat if you’ve flown the world’s largest airlines around the world and connected to the inflight WiFi: the multinational satellite services provider with administrative headquarters outside Washington, D.C. proves its networks’ prowess everyday by beaming inflight internet connectivity to thousands of airplanes every day.

One would figure that connecting planes flying at 20,000-plus feet altitudes at speeds upwards of 500 mph would make connecting ground-based farm machinery that plants, sprays, and harvests at around 10 mph a relative sinch.

However, both operating environments carry their own unique challenges. In farming, that means pushing a signal into areas without ample communications infrastructure already in place to support it. And having hardware robust enough to handle dusty, hot, and harsh operating environments for long hours.

The Deere and CNH connected machine projects are launching this summer in South America – Brazil, to be even more specific – due to that continents’ spotty cellular coverage. Australia – another country with vast expanses of sparsely populated, underdeveloped farmland throughout its interior – remains another priority market. Plans to bring both services to North American farmers are currently slated for Q1 of 2025, according to reps from both equipment manufacturers.

“When you think about connectivity in farming it’s really the foundation that enables all of the technology to work on the farm,” Marc Kermisch, CNH chief digital and information officer, told Schwab Network in a recent televised interview. “And even though we have one of the largest cellular networks out there for our farmers that covers 160 countries, it reaches only about 33% of the total land mass globally that is farmed.”

“What we’re doing is bringing a megabits per second internet connection to farm machinery,” says Joel Schroeder, director of Business Development, Intelsat. “This can offer an enhanced level of telematics data – more data and information with more frequency. Now being able to direct information between the cloud and the machines, enabling the farmer to have real-time visibility to machines’ locations and what they’re doing, and being able to visualize real time yield data, it enables complete visibility of operations.”

Intelsat connects farm machines and moves data via a hybrid, multi-orbit network of both Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and high throughput GEO stationary (GEO) satellites that Schroeder describes as “very high reliability” combining the best of both constellations.

The Starlink network exclusively leverages its own LEO satellite constellations while promising comparable high speed, low latency connections.

Neither service has announced pricing details for its North America rollout yet.

Comparing apples to apples, according to Schroeder, Intelsat’s network offers a “wider range of service” and, here’s the big one: additional layers of redundancy, or fail-safe backups that ensure connectivity is always strong and available – even when unplanned events like solar weather temporarily disrupt other constellations.

“The more you can mitigate those kinds of interruptions for farmers, the better,” Schroeder admits, adding that Intelsat’s networks remained operational during the most recent solar flare events in May.

What is coming soon?

Schroeder and his team at Intelsat are working to make satellite connectivity even more accessible and vigorous. That could mean a convergence, or merging, of the various terrestrial (land-based) and satellite offerings that “will only benefit the farmer through a more seamless movement of data” he adds.

“As part of the ongoing 5G rollout globally you’ll start to see non-terrestrial networks like Intelsat running on 5G core networks that will provide not only the ability to connect (machines) but also we can start to leverage standards-based hardware being built at scale,” Schroeder says, noting such a setup could also mean lower costs for subscribers.

“There are just a lot of advancements (taking place) right now – this conversation around the convergance of satellite and terrestrial is taking place at a level that has never been seen before in the industry,” he says. “It’s about just being able to bring a consistent level of access to enable all of the advanced applications in addition to the various telematics services that the ag OEMs are offering.”

Solar Storms Knocked Connected Machines Offline: So Now What?

Thu, 16 May 2024 14:55:41 GMT

By now you’ve surely read the reports: a very intense solar storm in space disrupted farm machinery telematics last Friday. For some, the situation lasted well into the weekend during the heart of planting season.

Simply put: not good, not good at all.

Now, we all know that weather delays are one thing - completely out of our control, even expected to an extent - but being delayed by the very technology that is supposed to make us more efficient is...ironic. And for some farmers, potentially quite maddening.

That’s because while many of us lucky enough to be in the viewing zone were chasing the aurora borealis (aka Northern Lights), many farmers were forced to press pause and wait until GPS satellites came back online. Many GPS services require a minimum of 8 connected satelittes to establish solid connectivity for accurate guidance and data telematics.

It seems, however, that like most things discussed and posted about on online, the posts on #plant24 and other social media channels perhaps made the situation seem a bit more dire (or dramatic) than it turned out in reality.

“There were some scattered reports of these storms delaying planting over the weekend, particularly in the Midwest, but no major disruptions have been reported by farmers at this time,” says Curt Covington, senior director of instituition credit, AgAmerica. “Dealerships like 21st Century Equipment reported a slight disruption to their RTK networks, but it was resolved relatively quickly, as far as I know.”

Covington has an extensive background in PR and he regularly monitors and comments on developments in agriculture and technology. Now that GPS systems have been restored to full functionality, Covington is concerned the outage may have frustrated some farmers to the point of no return.

“It could deter some farm operators from widespread adoption of smart agritech systems,” he opines. “Overall, this event should spark an important conversation in the farm community. Will this happen again and if so, at what scale? And what steps can we take to ensure the technology we rely on in agriculture is protected?”

Covington worries it’s just another setback to toss on top of the rather large, steaming pile of issues that farmers have had to sort through this spring. That’s everything from depressed commodity prices to dicamba’s now-sealed fate to the ripple effects of H5N1 in the livestock markets . These issues and others have created a mounting heap of uncertainty as we head into the summer months.

“If this delay affects planting schedules for corn growers in the Midwest, it might lead to increased yield losses if crops are planted too late, ultimately squeezing profit margins,” he says. “This situation compounds with expectations of declining farm income following several robust years.”

There’s no need for ambiguousness there: the solar storms surely did delay planting schedules for many operators. If there is one silver lining, though, it’s that many farmers in the Eastern Corn Belt were already rained out of planting for the weekend. An Ohio farmer we spoke with confirmed he didn’t miss any field time over the weekend because, well, he hasn’t been dry enough to plant corn for almost two weeks at this point. No harm, no foul for that farmer.

Still, it’s time, Covington thinks, for a wider discussion in ag tech around creating redudant systems that ensure uptime and consistent performance.

“We should be having these conversations now to reduce the risk of future disruption to our food system as technology becomes an increasingly essential part of it,” he says. “If this were a singular event, the lasting impact should be minimal. However, there may be cause for concern if this becomes a reoccurring event. If anything comes from this, it should be a focus on the importance of being proactive in protecting our food system and having a response plan in place to avoid large-scale disruptions.”

CNH, Intelsat Announce Connected Machine Collaboration

Tue, 30 Apr 2024 12:35:49 GMT

CNH and Intelsat, operator of one of the world’s largest integrated satellite and terrestrial communication networks, announced a collaboration that will provide farmers access to the internet via a ruggedized satellite communications (SATCOM) service.

This offering will be available in the second half of 2024 to farmers in Brazil, where ConectarAgro’s Rural Connectivity Indicator found only 19% of the area available for agricultural use has high-speed internet access. The companies plan to expand their collaboration to the U.S., Australia, and other regions.

The potential tieup, now official, was first alluded to at World AgriTech Summit in San Francisco.

Intelsat’s capabilities offer Case IH, Steyr and New Holland customers SATCOM coverage via its rugged, industrial-grade terminals. CNH customers will use a rigorously tested terminal that connects easily and is proven to withstand extreme weather conditions and the vibration and shock produced by farming equipment.

“Satellite technology helps solve connectivity challenges for hard-to-reach farms, but not all providers are equal. Intelsat stands out for their depth of experience as well as the quality and reliability of their service and industrial terminal offerings,” said Marc Kermisch, Chief Digital and Information Officer at CNH.

Ag Tech and Connectivity: It Matters More Than Ever Before

Tue, 26 Mar 2024 16:32:10 GMT

Machine connectivity has evolved from a “nice to have” to an absolute necessity as farmers embrace digital agriculture, or Smart Farming, in greater numbers.

“In rural America there are areas without connectivity and if that happens when we’re in a field the wheels simply stop turning,” Iowa farmer Laura Bloome said during last week’s World Agri-Tech Innovation Summit in San Fransisco, California.

The Summit is held annually in the Bay Area – a hotbed of ag tech and specialty crop innovation – bringing together an eclectic array of ag tech innovators and entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, early-stage startups, and representation from the highest C-suite levels at global agriculture firms. Hot topics this year included:

climate smart farming enabled by technology
biological-based product innovations
the decarbonization of farming
generative artificial intelligence (AI)
robotics
digital transformation in row crops and specialty agriculture

Bloome, who also consults as an executive recruiter, appeared on a panel titled “The Connected Farm: Smart Machines Optimize Productivity” alongside Marc Kermisch, chief digital officer, CNH Industrial, and Joel Schroeder, director of business development, Intelsat, which is a global OEM provider of satellite corrections.

Kermisch echoed Bloome’s thoughts on the importance of connectivity to today’s smart farmer, adding “it needs to be a base component of any farming practice, and it needs to be a base feature” for any ag tech product.

Schroeder sits at the other end of the table, having spent his career working on penetrating hard-to-reach areas – many of which are intensely productive agricultural regions – with enhanced machine connectivity via satellite signals.

He says the recent John Deere-SpaceX partnership has heightened farmer awareness of satellite connectivity and what it can provide.

“We’re seeing a real change in how satellite (connectivity) is being considered versus where it started,” he says. “It’s becoming the more popular option and it’s being used for more than just to support precision (ag) data but also to monitor machine performance and preventative maintenance.”

Kermisch and leadership at CNH Industrial see satellite connectivity as an enabling, uniting force for farmers. It provides reassurance during the hectic production cycles of broad-acre farming that their operations are going to run as they should, he says.

“They need that connectivity to plant straight, and they also need it when spraying so they don’t run over crops and cause yield loss,” Kermisch added. “It is crucial to ensure the farmer can download the data, run prescriptions, and do that post-mortem analysis for the next farming mission.”

The act of collecting data itself is not an issue on Bloome’s crop and livestock operation. Moreso, it’s crunching the data coming off all the connected machines, implements, and sensors and uncovering the insights that help produce a crop more efficiently.

“Increasing yield is always important, but I look for profitability per acre,” she said. “Because our highest yielding field isn’t always the field with the best profitability.”

Advice for farmers

Schroeder advises farmers looking at satellite services to form partnerships with the large equipment OEMs – whether that’s at the local dealership level or even higher up the chain.

“By working with OEMs there is an opportunity to raise adoption rates of ag tech while lowering costs and making these technologies more accessible,” he added.

When it comes to adopting new technologies, Bloome is looking for products that help automate the often monotonous but necessary tasks in the production cycle, calling such innovations “a huge game changer for us.”

“We won’t have autonomous tractors running in our fields anytime in the next five years – it just doesn’t pencil out,” she said. “But the autonomous technologies that can free us up to focus on things like grain marketing or working on carbon credit programs, that’s where it starts to make sense.”

All three panelists agreed the recent influx of connectivity optimizing developments – whether it’s the recent Deere-SpaceX tie up or other satellite constellations – is critical to enabling the sensor connected “Smart Farm” of the future.

“There’s great opportunity for connected soil health and water management sensors, so the farmer can figure out when to plant based on optimized soil or weather conditions,” Kermisch said. “And we’re also looking at, are there ways to measure the efficacy of the human labor element – whether through the phones we all carry or other on-farm sensors – to help get labor staged and optimized?”

Choose Wisely: Smart Strategies to Select the Right Corrections Service

Fri, 15 Mar 2024 15:47:50 GMT

Farm Journal’s Smart Farming Week is an annual week-long emphasis on innovation in agriculture. The goal is to encourage you to explore and prioritize the technology, tools and practices that will help you farm smarter. Innovation today ensures an efficient, productive and sustainable tomorrow.

Finding technologies and machines that provide a short return-on-investment cycle is a smart farmer’s dream scenario – especially in a depressed revenue market.

Former Trimble executive Darryl Matthews has penciled out the math on guidance and positioning solutions. He finds that adding GPS to a machine is a smart play.

“Guidance can pay $15 an acre, on average, in corn production back to a farmer in less overlap, less fuel and less inputs,” Matthews says. “At 650 acres and $15 an acre, guidance is going to pay for itself in one year, and typically those systems will last seven years.”

Matthews has research that shows GPS and guidance technology have achieved 80% market penetration among farms across North America.

So, for that last 20% of farmers who haven’t adopted correction services with autosteer yet, what are some tips to keep in mind before pulling the trigger on a system?

Alex Ngu, product manager, Trimble Positioning Services, recently shared these five pointers farmers should consider when evaluating the various options:

Consider a navigation system that is multi-constellation as it will provide better risk mitigation against ionospheric disturbances (aka Space Weather) .
Keep in mind the value of having a high-precision positioning engine that will provide position and orientation data from the fusion of GNSS signals, globally accessible high-accuracy correction services and measurement data from a variety of sensors. This type of system will deliver positioning performance in challenging environments.
Systems available on a subscription basis often include more value without the upfront cost.
Choose a provider with a clear commitment to R&D investment. Given rapid innovation in this field, it pays to tap into new upgrades and enhancements as they are released, as opposed to purchasing solutions that will need to be replaced.
Carefully evaluate which type of correction service is right for you – RTK level vs. a free service with less accuracy – based on what type of crop you have, where you live, etc.

“Modern farming technology has the potential to revolutionize the industry, but it’s only as useful as your ability to access it,” Ngu says. “That’s why rural connectivity is more important than ever. With a reliable connection, farmers can access the latest tools and gadgets to improve yields and streamline operations.”

More Smart Farming content for you:

Next-Gen Spotlight: Technology Is This Illinois Farmer’s Forte

8 Field Activity Data Types You Need to Collect Now

Break Down The Barriers In The Biological Space

Space Weather: Start Planning Today for Tomorrow’s GPS Outage

Wed, 13 Mar 2024 20:22:35 GMT

It’s a simple question, but one that Dr. Terri Griffin, Kansas State University, suspects many farmers would have a hard time answering “Yes” to: Can you plant or harvest a crop without GPS?

Instances of space weather , or solar flare events, can and often do cause GPS failures. Griffin says a lot of important, powerful and smart people in world government are concerned about these events becoming more commonplace.

Looking at the production cycle specifically, such an event occurring in January is probably not a big deal to farmers as the vast majority aren’t planting or harvesting during that time. But, if one of these “atmospheric scintillations” were to occur during the busy spring planting or fall harvest season?

“With today’s connected equipment you can’t plant without GPS lock, which requires getting connection with a minimum of four satellites, the seeds won’t drop,” he says. “So, the question becomes, do we wait it out? Or do we keep an old 6-row ‘dumb planter’ with row markers for just these instances?”

Griffin has been monitoring the situation from his Kansas State University lab in Manhattan for some time now. He says this summer’s Northern Lights event over North America was a geomagnetic storm that did have a temporary negative effect on GPS signals.

Not to mention, there are warnings abound from government agencies that predict such things (NOAA, NASA, etc.) that the world should expect a widespread outage at some point during Solar Cycle 25 – which is the cycle we’re in currently.

“We are approaching solar max in the next six months to a year,” Griffin says. “I am fully expecting to have GPS blackouts at some point soon at this latitude. Think about how we use GPS – the airline industry, for one, is paying a lot of attention to this, as they should be.”

Farmers could conceivably manage a widespread GPS outage by investing in a local RTK network. Griffin says RTK is great in that it is a set, earthly signal, and you can basically create your own local positioning system with three or more ground stations. It is an expensive backup plan, though, he admits.

Griffin has three recommendations for farmers in the field when a previously robust GPS signal proves suddenly suspect:

1.) Don’t panic. Instead, wait it out and be patient. Most GPS outages are only temporary. Griffin says an R2 intensity event in space would result in just a one-hour outage, but a more robust R4 would likely mean an entire week without GPS. “That could get really tough if you’re in the middle of planting or harvesting,” he admits, adding that many sprayers also require GPS connection.

2.) Don’t blame your equipment dealer. It’s likely not their fault, and they might not even be aware there is a regional outage. Instead, give your sales rep a quick call or text to see if there is an outage within their systems.

3.) Check NOAA’s Planetary K Index. You can even sign up for email alerts to let you know if you’re in the midst of one of these space weather induced outages.

“Can you legislate (against) sunspots,” Griffin adds. “I mean, someone will try to, but that’s probably not possible. What will we do when these events occur?”

More Smart Farming Week Content

Here’s How to Bridge the Data Gap With Your Ag Retailer

Inside AMVAC’s Strategy To Widen Precision Agriculture Adoption

10 Tips to Shorten Your Cover Crop Learning Curve

John Deere, SpaceX Announce Starlink Deal

Wed, 17 Jan 2024 19:08:32 GMT

Deere & Company announced an agreement with SpaceX to provide Starlink network satellite communications (SATCOM) service to farmers. Utilizing the Starlink network, this solution will allow farmers facing rural connectivity challenges to fully leverage precision agriculture technologies.

“The value of connectivity to farmers is broader than any single task or action. Connectivity unlocks vast opportunities that were previously limited or unavailable,” said Aaron Wetzel, VP of production and precision ag production systems.

The SATCOM solution will connect both new and existing machines through satellite internet service and ruggedized satellite terminals. This will enable autonomy, real-time data sharing, remote diagnostics, enhanced self-repair solutions, and machine-to-machine communication, all of which help farmers work more efficiently while minimizing downtime, according to John Deere.

“We are bringing satellite communications service to the farm at scale so farmers with cellular coverage challenges can maximize the value of connectivity to their operations,” said Jahmy Hindman, senior VP & CTO.

He adds that the SpaceX partnership “unlocks the John Deere tech stack so every farmer can fully utilize their current precision agriculture technology in addition to the new innovative solutions they will deploy in the future.”

But, by adding a third-party telematics solution into the data ecosystem, many online are wondering who controls the data (and access to it) as it passes through the Starlink system on its way to or from the Operations Center?

John Deere users with those concerns can rest assured that “we don’t anticipate any changes there, the customer still controls it,” said Mike Kool, senior product manager - connected fleets.

Kool also shared that John Deere has been working on its fleet connectivity project for the last 18-24 months. Starlink’s Leo constellation of low-orbit satelittes delivered the “high bandwidth and low latency” performance Deere was seeking.

“This solution fits our customer needs today and it also allows them to grow in the future,” said Kool. “The way I like to think about it is we’re giving our customers their time back, giving them more time to do the things they love to do. They have a very important job in feeding and clothing the world, and doing so on less arable land today. I believe wholeheartedly this will further unlock the power of our tech stack.”

Deere has yet to outline how the new Starlink features will be priced. Kool said those details are still in the works, so stay tuned.

To activate the Starlink solution, John Deere dealers will install a ruggedized Starlink terminal on compatible machines, along with a 4G LTE JDLink modem to connect the machine to the John Deere Operations Center.

The service will initially be available through a limited release in the United States and Brazil starting in the second half of 2024, according to the company.

New Ways To Address Healthcare Issues Are Needed For Rural Americans

Tue, 09 Jan 2024 14:36:27 GMT

It’s no secret the rural U.S. healthcare system faces ongoing pressures from financial struggles and labor shortages. Rural hospitals, in particular, have been hit by the shortages, according to Carrie Cochran-MacClain, chief policy officer for the National Rural Health Association (NRHA).

“We are raising a stink out here in Washington about what we’re seeing in terms of the status of our rural hospitals,” Cochran-MacClain says. “We know that coming out of the Covid-19 pandemic, a lot of hospitals really took a hit during that time. They did everything they could to provide services to the people in their communities, and now they’re struggling, and we’re continuing to see closures.”

Since 2005, 104 rural hospitals have closed. An additional 600 rural hospitals — 30% of all rural hospitals in the U.S. — are at risk of closing in the near future, according to the Center for Healthcare Quality and Payment Reform.

In response, Cochran-MacClain says one stop-gap measure Congress has enacted now is the development of rural emergency hospitals (REH), a Medicare provider designation established through the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021.

New Methods Of Care

REHs are meant to reinforce access to outpatient medical services and reduce health disparities in rural areas that are unlikely to be able to sustain a traditional, full-service hospital. Today, there are about 18 such facilities across the U.S.

“It’s a great model that’s keeping a level of (medical care) access in rural settings, and that’s fantastic,” she told Chip Flory, host of AgriTalk, on Monday.

“But I think our perspective is, in addition, we hate to see hospitals closing their in-patient units, because they can’t afford to keep them open and are being forced to turn to this model,” Cochran-MacClain adds. “We want to make sure those facilities that are in rural communities and want to keep their inpatient care are able to do that.”

Achieving that goal – and continuing to provide rural Americans with healthcare options – will require addressing the costs and labor issues, she told Flory.

“We have to do more to make sure that we’re training (medical) folks from rural areas, that we’re recruiting folks to rural areas, and really investing in that workforce,” she says.

Reimbursement rates to rural hospitals also need to be addressed. Many rural hospitals struggle to maintain financial viability under traditional Medicare payment models.

“When we moved to the way that we pay hospitals now, called prospective payment rates, those rates were not made for small, low-volume facilities,” Cochran-MacClain says. “So, we continue to really need some adjustments to the way we are paying for health care in rural areas. And that’s what we’re trying to do with a whole slew of proposals in Washington.”

The rural healthcare discussion between Cochhran-MacClain and Flory is available here.

More Funding Resources Needed

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced in late 2023 some of the steps underway to help rural communities keep access to local healthcare available to residents. These include:

Funding to rural providers to join value-based care initiatives. Medicare’s largest value-based care program, the Medicare Shared Savings Program, encourages providers to collaborate to provide coordinated, high-quality care to people with Medicare by forming or joining Accountable Care Organizations.

Grants to rural hospitals and communities to provide health care services. HHS has several grant opportunities to support rural communities, including $28 million to provide direct health services and expand infrastructure and $16 million to provide technical assistance to rural hospitals facing financial distress.

Developing and investing in the nursing workforce. Nurses play a critical role in primary care, mental health care and maternal health care, particularly in rural areas. HHS has announced more than $100 million in awards to address the increasing demand for registered nurses, nurse practitioners, certified nurse midwives and nurse faculty nationwide.

Expanding access to services provided via telehealth. During the first year of the Covid pandemic, Medicare telehealth visits increased 63-fold, especially benefiting patients in rural communities. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services is extending many of the Medicare telehealth flexibilities that were provided during the Covid pandemic through December 31, 2024.

Break Free from the Winter Blues: 2 Steps to Keep Seasonal Depression at Bay

From Pain To Gain: Farming Duo Overcomes Heartache To Forge New Partnership

Startling Reality: Rate of Suicide Among Farmers is 3.5 Times Higher Than the General Population

Don’t Doubt Your Purpose When You Find Yourself in a Weird Spot

New Legislation Looks To Connect Farmland And Ranchland To Broadband

Fri, 10 Nov 2023 15:39:11 GMT

U.S. growers and livestock producers increasingly rely on the internet across the farm and ranch, yet many still don’t have access to it. A report USDA released this past August, “ Technology Use, Farm Computer Usage and Ownership, ” found that 15 percent of farms and ranches have no access to the internet today.

New legislation announced Nov. 1 looks to change that by expanding high-speed broadband internet access across rural America.

Two members of the House Agriculture Committee, Congressman Brad Finstad (MN-R) and Congresswoman Yadira Caraveo (CO-D), introduced the legislation called “Linking Access to Spur Technology for Agriculture Connectivity in Rural Environments (Last Acre) Act,” within the

USDA’s Office of Rural Development.
The Last Acre Act would create a new competitive grant and loan program at USDA to expand high-speed broadband internet access across eligible farmland, ranchland, and farm sites.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) currently defines minimum broadband internet service as internet access with a minimum of 25 megabits per second (Mbps) download speed and upload speeds of 3 Mbps or more.

One generally accepted rule of thumb is that anything above 100 Mbps is considered “fast” internet because it can connect multiple devices at once.

How Farmers Connect
In its Technology Use research, USDA found 51 percent of internet-connected farms utilize a broadband connection while 75 percent of internet-connected farms have access through a cellular data plan. Additionally, 69 percent of farms have a desktop or laptop computer while 82 percent of farms had a smart phone.

The Last Acre Act is among the latest moves by legislators to address the digital divide between urban and rural America.

“As a farmer, I understand the important role precision ag technology plays in increasing production and maximizing efficiency. Yet, many rural areas of southern Minnesota and across the country don’t have reliable access to the wireless connectivity needed in order to utilize these techniques,” said Rep. Finstad, in a news release.

“The Last Acre Act will help drive agricultural innovation into the 21st century by bringing the latest farming technology and tools to every corner of farm country, giving farmers and ranchers – in even the most remote areas – greater ability to adopt precision ag applications and ensure optimal efficiency in their operations,” added Finstad.

The USDA Technology Use report released in August shows that 32 percent of farms used the internet to purchase agricultural inputs this year, which was an increase of 3 percent from 2021.

“Additionally, 23 percent of farms used the internet to market agricultural activities, which was an increase of 2 percent from 2021,” the USDA said. “Farms which conducted business with non-agricultural websites in 2023 increased by 2 percent to 49 percent.”

Precision Agriculture Needs
Increasingly, legislators and broadband providers have fine-tuned how they look at the internet needs of rural America, according to Mitchell Bailey, CEO for GRM Networks, a member-owned cooperative that supplies broadband and other communication services to residents in parts of northern Missouri and southern Iowa.

“The terminology used has changed from ‘fiber to the premise,’ which focused on connecting homes to more of a focus on ‘fiber to the acre,’ because we understand the need to make sure we’re connecting every acre of farmland to advanced technology,” Bailey told Farm Journal.

“In an ever-changing marketplace, it is imperative that corn farmers use the latest in precision agriculture technology to remain competitive and sustainable, and this is only possible through access to high-speed broadband,” added Harold Wolle, National Corn Growers Association president.

The Last Acre Act is endorsed by the American Farm Bureau Federation, Association of Equipment Manufacturers, Competitive Carriers Association, National Corn Growers Association, National Milk Producers Federation, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, National Farmers Union, John Deere, Ethos Connected, and Wireless Internet Service Providers Association.

Monthly Average Costs
As part of its Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed in 2021, the Biden administration committed $65 billion to help ensure that every American has access to affordable internet service.

The price of internet service ranges widely across the U.S., from $20 to well over $100 a month.

The price consumers pay depends on a range of factors, including internet speed, the type of connection, and what’s available in a specific area.

A Forbes survey of 37 internet service provides (ISPs) across the U.S. earlier this year found consumers paid an average cost of $65 a month. That’s in line with recent findings by Consumer Reports , which found in 2022 the median monthly internet cost was $74.99.

How States Stack Up
A February report from BroadbandNow Research , a firm that conducts comparisons on internet companies using data from the FCC and internet providers, identified what it calls the “best and worst states” for broadband internet service in the U.S. Its considerations were based on two factors – overall coverage and quality of connections.

The report ranked Maryland as the best overall state for broadband internet, followed by New Jersey, New York, Delaware and Washington. The rankings considered overall access to broadband, access to low-cost broadband, download and upload speeds, and access to fiber-optic service.

At the other end of the spectrum, in the worst category, West Virginia came in last.

West Virginia was followed in the report by Alaska, Mississippi, Arkansas and Vermont. All five states at the bottom scored a zero on internet quality, or latency, which is the time it takes information to go from one source to another.

There were 16 states in the report that scored a zero in the quality category, including North and South Dakota, Nebraska, Michigan, Iowa, Ohio and Wisconsin.

The state with the slowest average download speed was Kansas, followed by Alaska and South Carolina.

John Phipps: Is Broadband the Secret to Reviving Rural America?

Texas Farmer’s Top Five Technologies

“Technical Debt” Continues To Grow Rapidly In The Agriculture Industry

Broadband Bill Would Push Internet to Every “Last Acre” in Rural America

Thu, 27 Jul 2023 20:53:15 GMT

USDA’s Farm Computer Usage and Ownership report revealed that in 2022, roughly 18% of U.S. farms don’t have access to the internet. While efforts to link the broadband gaps have been put in motion, no piece of legislation addresses every corner of the U.S.

Current rural development programs focus on connecting networks to rural households and businesses—a “last mile” approach. Sen. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) rolled out the LAST ACRE Act on the Senate floor this week, with the hopes of pushing connectivity to every U.S. farm in a “last acre” approach.

“Producers looking to adopt precision ag technologies need network connectivity that extends far past their residences. They need to be able to make real-time decisions that increase yields and employ resources more efficiently. Our LAST ACRE Act will ensure USDA has the strategy and resources needed to support last acre connectivity,” said Fischer.

If passed, the LAST ACRE Act would:
• Establish an initial bid application for internet access across farms and ranches
• Create a system for connectivity devices to be placed on farm sites, structures and machinery
• Generate a competitive bidding process for service providers
• Direct USDA to include Census of Ag questions about broadband

Kip Eideberg, Ag Equipment Manufacturer’s senior vice president of government and industry relations, echoed Fischer’s comments, saying the act would ensure all aspects of rural America are connected, “from the hospital to the school and from the farmhouse to the field.”

A comprehensive breakdown of the LAST ACRE Act can be found here .

What's in it for Ag in the New Spending Bill?

Wed, 28 Dec 2022 03:26:54 GMT

The House on Friday averted a government shutdown by voting 225 to 201 in favor of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023. The $1.7 trillion omnibus bill includes 12 separate bills that cover everything from natural disasters to military pay to foreign aid.

Sanford Bishop Jr., ag, rural development and food and drug administration subcommittee chairman, says the bill is “crucial” to America’s economic success.

“These federal programs make our country a world leader in agriculture, ensure that we have safe, abundant food and medicine to lead healthy lives, support America’s farmers and ranchers, and provide Americans with the materials that clothe us and build our communities,” Bishop says.

Here are highlights of the key ag-sector funding from the omnibus:

Insurance

• Directs USDA to index all administrative and operating expense in the crop insurance program for inflation.

Research

• Agricultural research: Ag research funding will increase by $175 million to $3.45 billion in 2023, including monies for Agricultural Research Service, National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Agriculture and Food Research Initiative, and Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education program.

Conservation

• Includes the SUSTAINS Act, which allows corporations and other private entities to contribute funding for conservation projects and authorize USDA to match the donations.

• Reauthorizes the Pesticide Registration Improvement Act, which imposes fees for maintenance and registration of active ingredients. It boosts registration and maintenance fees 30% and allows EPA to raise fees by 5% in 2024 and 2026.

Infrastructure

• $1.48 billion is included on top of annual appropriations funding for the Army Corps of Engineers to make emergency repairs and navigation improvements needed after extreme weather events, including low water on the Mississippi River.

“One of the best returns on investment is when we pump money into our infrastructure, especially the great waterway system,” Jim Wiesemeyer, ProFarmer policy analyst told AgriTalk Host Chip Flory. “This town [Washington, D.C.] has had a mindset change on pumping more money, not only in the new projects, but restoring some of the water transportation endeavors of the past. It’s good news.”

Relief Aid

• $3.7 billion in farm disaster aid, to cover eligible 2022 crop and livestock losses, with $494.5 million to be used for livestock losses due to drought or wildfires, as part of overall $40.6 billion for disasters.

• Requires USDA to make a one-time payment to each rice producer on a U.S. farm in the 2022 crop year. USDA will determine payment rates based on yield history and acreage.

• Authorizes $100 million for the USDA to make pandemic assistance payments to cotton merchandisers that purchased cotton from a U.S. producer from March 1, 2020, through the measure’s enactment date.

• $25 million for specialty crop equitable relief.

Broadband

• USDA’s ReConnect loan and grant program for rural broadband will get $348 million for fiscal 2023.

Food Assistance

• Make permanent a summer EBT (food stamp) program to provide up to $40 a month per child. It allows grab-and-go or home delivery of meals to kids in rural areas as an alternative to meals in group settings Any summer meals benefits issued to a household in the summer of 2023 couldn’t exceed $120 per child. USDA will be required to establish a program beginning in the summer of 2024 and annually thereafter to issue EBT benefits to eligible households to ensure continued access to food when school isn’t in session in the summer.

• Aid for Food for Peace ($1.8 billion) and McGovern-Dole International Food for Education ($248 million) programs.

Carbon

• Includes the Growing Climate Solutions Act, which authorizes USDA to oversee the registration of farm technical advisers and carbon-credit verification services

Wiesemeyer says the swift passage of the spending package signals the coming farm bill might be easier to pass than some had previously thought, despite the new congress moving in next week.

“Congress put more than a few dollars in this for farm bill-related topics, especially food stamps and some of the climate change funding,” he says. “I think this really increases the odds that both the Senate and the house should get a new farm bill done in 2023.”

The bill will now move to President Biden’s desk, where he is expected to sign it this week.

More on policy :

4 Ways to Advocate for Ag in the New Farm Bill
U.S. Defense Spending Bill Leads to China Taking Aim at Taiwan

John Phipps: A Legitimate Broadband Solution

Thu, 15 Dec 2022 14:00:00 GMT

Starlink works. After a month of using the satellite-based broadband system, I can almost say it was worth the 20-month wait. Almost.

It will take time to get over the fact that despite being an early subscriber, neighbors around me signed up and got their equipment in a few weeks or even days.

A Quantum Leap

At the risk of sounding like an endorsement, for those truly rural (which I define as over 20 miles to a McDonald’s or Walmart), the ability to have something better than not-quite-enough-to-stream-television finally allows us to experience what is commonplace for most Am’'ericans.

Many of you might want hard numbers, but I’ve stopped checking speed tests obsessively. Readings are erratic to the point of humorous.

But, the performance on our computers and television is a quantum leap forward from the barely adequate internet we have endured and the fiber optic that will never pass our door.

We have experienced no buffering delays. We can download video in minutes not hours. Even graphic-heavy web pages open quickly. My uploading speeds have been unimpressive, but sufficient.

Installation is as close to foolproof as possible, unless you mount on a roof, at which point the working-at-a-height syndrome slowed me down.

With a smartphone and app, you can be up and running in minutes, but you might want to fiddle with your router’s location.

Three significant downsides exist:

1. Cost

Equipment is $600, not including a roof mount ($50), and monthly fees just bumped up to $110.

2. Latency (the time for a signal to roundtrip).

I’m not sure serious gamers will find Starlink adequate, although more satellites constantly improve performance.

3. Elon Musk

As much as I appreciate his genius, I am really tired of him (even as I send him my money).

Life-Enhancing Value

While streaming sports and movies will rule media attention, it overlooks deeper values of good broadband.

My neighbors have a son who helps care for them, enduring a 120-mile round trip each visit. His job as a senior programmer is now fully remote thanks to COVID-19, but until Starlink he could not work at his parents’ home.

Starlink eased an ever more common burden. Workable connection to the information universe adds life-enhancing value to rural residents far beyond entertainment.

The Connected Future

I knew when I watched a SpaceX rocket land on a barge and then woke at dawn to look for a satellite string last year, this was a future for which I had been hoping.

Starlink might be a fit for any user, but deep in the boonies it’s a near miracle.

More on rural connectivity:

Rep. G.T. Thompson Lists His 3 Farm Bill Objectives
Research in Ag-Tech Top-Of-Mind in Farm Bill Hearing

Rep. G.T. Thompson Lists His 3 Farm Bill Objectives

Tue, 22 Nov 2022 23:44:15 GMT

GOP took the House by a slim margin last week, leading to a divided government as Democrats won majority in the Senate.

Rep. G.T. Thompson (R-Pa.) is gearing up to replace Rep. David Scott (D-Ga.) as the House Ag Committee chairman in Jan. With his new title in tow, Thompson will be working alongside current Senate Ag Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.) to finalize the passage of a farm bill in 2023.

As the New Year approaches, Thompson shared his highest priority farm bill objectives in a recent episode of AgriTalk with Host Chip Flory:

1. Internet Access

Signed into action in November 2021, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law dedicated $759 million to deploy the ReConnect rural broadband program. The program aims to provide internet access to rural areas and “build brighter futures”, according to USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack.

Thompson, however, isn’t convinced this funding will fill the broadband void and plans to make it a legislative priority.

“Rural broadband is still the No. 1 needed utility that we have infrastructure needs for in this country,” Thompson says. “The only option to change that need is to do our jobs.”

Thompson is carrying that same “get it done” attitude into the insurance front.

2. Crop Insurance

Crop insurance can use some improvements in 2023, according to Thompson. He says this is an ongoing issue that can’t wait another five years.

“What are we supposed to do with reference prices and no margins in Title 1?” Thompson says. “We have to protect crop insurance by learning from our disaster experiences and improve it.”

While Thompson says time is of the essence in crop insurance, some feel time is the main factor underlining the whole farm bill due to the divided government.

3. Passage

Jim Wiesemeyer, Pro Farmer policy analyst, says there’s speculation the House will run out of time on the farm bill in 2023, because of the need for hearings and to gear up new members and staff on the “complexities” of farm policy.

When asked about timelines and expirations, Thompson reiterated the committee will need to work in a “very intense” way in order to prevent the legislation from expiring and “kicking the can down the road.” To avoid any delays, Thompson reiterated his urgency and drive for bipartisanship is his “commitment.”

According to Wiesemeyer, Thompson will likely meet this goal by pushing farm bill action and policy changes the moment offices change hands in January.

More on farm bill 2023:

Impact of the Elections on Farm Bill 2023
‘Red Wave’ of Voters Did Not Happen: Why Were Poll Predictions So Far Off the Mark?
As Hearings for the Farm Bill Ratchet Up, You can Do 3 Things to Help Agriculture

3 Hot-Button Ag Items for Build Back Better

Wed, 15 Dec 2021 16:45:16 GMT

The Build Back Better (BBB) Act passed through the House on Nov. 19, allocating roughly $2.2 trillion to climate change, health and child care, among others. Jim Wiesemeyer, Pro Farmer policy analyst, predicts that unless Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) caves, the Senate will put the Build Back Better vote on hold until 2022. Here is how some of the roughly $82 billion in agricultural spending could be dispersed.

Conservation

A five-year incentive program outlined in the $27 billion conservation portion of BBB offers investments such as $25-per-acre payments for cover crops. That is a signal of the government’s interest in two key carbon incentive unknowns: how to measure it and how to price it, says Jim Wiesemeyer, Pro Farmer policy analyst.

AgriTalk Host Chip Flory sees the $25 cover crop incentive as “enough” to spark farmers interest because it would “cover about half of that $40 to $50 input cost.”

BBB crop incentives offer a higher return than most smaller carbon trading programs, according to Pat Westhoff, director of the Food and Agricultural Policy Research Institute at the University of Missouri. If implemented, he says, “it doesn’t appear there’s a cap on how many acres can be planted to receive the proposed $25 per acre incentive.”

Forestry

As it stands, BBB allocates $27 billion in forest-focused investments to reduce wildfire risk through hazardous fuels treatment and vegetation management.

Compared to the past three-decades, the average annual forest area burned from 2021 to 2050 is likely to increase by 50% to 100% if fire and fuels management techniques do not evolve, according to findings from University of California - Merced Professor John Abatzoglou.

Rural Electrification

Under the Rural Energy for America Program, BBB would create a new energy program titled “Clean Energy Repowering for Rural Utilities.” The $9.7 billion repowering program would assist rural electric cooperatives in transitioning from fossil to renewable fuels.

Grants and loans as incentives would be available to rural co-ops who choose to invest in renewable energy and energy efficient technologies, according to Westhoff.

Will 5G, StarLink and Private Networks Narrow the Digital Divide?

Wed, 03 Feb 2021 21:41:09 GMT

By Chris Bennett and Clinton Griffiths

No internet connection. Connection interrupted. 404. These menacing alerts are a constant reminder of the haves and have nots of connectivity.

Even though the internet has been around for three decades, some 40% of the world is yet to get online. The Federal Communication’s Commission (FCC) estimates 19 million Americans lack access to high-speed internet. In rural areas, nearly a quarter of the population has no access.

As investments pour in for rural connectivity and 5G deployment, new opportunities are expected to bridge this momentous gap.

“In about 10 years the person who is running the family farm will be the kid who’s never known a world without technology, the internet, an iPhone or an Android,” says Jim Carroll, an agricultural futurist.

In just the past decade billions of dollars have been spent on closing the digital divide. Connect Americans Now , a coalition of 250 organizations representing agriculture, education and other businesses, calculates:

Congress has allocated roughly $34 billion in funds to improve infrastructure and broadband access.
That’s on top of the $47.3 billion spent from 2009 to 2017.

Despite the outlay, 2020 showcased the size and scope of the problem.

“Even prior to COVID-19, everyone knew the state of rural broadband was not good,” says Steve Cubbage, precision ag consultant and co-founder of Record Harvest. “What this pandemic did was not only expose how deep the digital divide truly is between rural residents and their city cousins but also widened it by a country mile.”

5G: A Faster Future

In its time, 2G crawled at 40 kilobytes per second, and was passed by 3G’s capacity for megabytes per second. 4G bounced in with hundreds of megabytes per second. Now 5G beckons with gigabytes per second. In theory, 5G provides a wireless speed 20 times faster than 4G long-term evolution (LTE).

The 5G benefits of speed, low latency and the ability to connect incredibly high numbers of devices is coupled with a few limitations, notes Kevin Monk, ag tech consultant, owner of The Monk Approach and Illinois farmer.

“In a city with countless connection points giving access to the network backbone, 5G won’t be any problem,” he explains. “But on the farm there will be large gaps in those connection points. The connection points that use a higher frequency have a reach of a few hundred yards maximum, making it unlikely to cover large swaths of rural areas. But I do think technology breakthroughs will follow to extend 5G to larger areas than previously thought possible.”

John Deere is pushing hard at the door of widespread broadband access and advent of 5G tech. Lane Arthur, vice president of data, applications and analytics at John Deere, contends the arrival of 5G will translate to grower benefit.

“We’re embedding the modems into our machines today, so they won’t be an add-on, and the benefit is everything from communication between machines to Deere using data to alert growers to part failure,” he says. “We’ve scaled our data pieces to match 3G and 4G, and we will scale to 5G.”

Arthur cites See & Spray, the ability to isolate weeds with herbicide applications, as one example of a leap in real-time digital connection.

“All new tech goes through a hype cycle of excitement, doubt and then settles to a realistic stage,” Arthur explains. “5G is no different and we’ll work our way through the hype, but these benefits such as See & Spray to the farmer are very real.”

Chad Swindoll, a Mississippi corn and cotton farmer, sees 5G as enabling technology but with limited use for the mainstream farmer while in its initial stages.

“The pros mean more exposure, farmers learning new tech and having it all become mainstream. The cons mean it may be harder for a farmer to opt out, and he may end up paying a premium for things he may or may not use,” says Swindoll, also owner of J19 Agriculture , an independent consultancy on ag technology and data.

A Starlink Future

Curtis Garner, founder of Verdant Robotics in Los Banos, Calif., was standing in the darkness of an apple orchard at 7 p.m. in 2019, working on a robot, when 15 equidistant stars appeared overhead. As the chain of lights moved fast and straight across the night sky, Garner exclaimed out loud: “What in the hell is that up there?”

Answer: Starlink. Started in 2015, by Elon Musk’s SpaceX, Starlink is a decade-long project aimed at providing internet access across the globe via a blanket of low Earth orbit (LEO) satellites. The first Starlink satellites launched in 2018, and roughly 1,000 have been deployed as of December 2020. By 2027, Starlink could have more than 40,000 satellites in LEO action.

Starlink hopes to capture a base of hard-to-reach customers with high-speed internet at a pace less than 5G, but possibly 10 times faster than 4G LTE.

“Preliminary ground testing has already begun,” Cubbage says. “In fact, Starlink provided remote internet service to emergency command centers directing firefighting crews in Oregon and Washington.”

In 2020, the FCC awarded Starlink more than $880 million from the $9.2 billion offered in phase one of the Rural Digital Opportunity Fund. Starlink’s win means it’s now required to deliver internet to more than 640,000 rural and hard-to- connect homes in the U.S.

Starlink isn’t the only game in the LEO satellite town. Telesat, Viasat and Amazon all have LEO satellite-based internet plans. Amazon’s Project Kuiper, which is likely to be the biggest competitor to Starlink, received FCC approval. The company plans to deploy 3,200 LEO satellites worth $10 billion to improve rural broadband and help wireless carriers extend LTE and 5G to underserved regions. Half of those satellites are slated to be launched in the next five years.

Private Network Payback

While higher speeds from 5G and satellites are coming, the technology for private internet networks on farms is a possibility today. These private LTEs are a game changer for agriculture, Garner says.

“If you build a private LTE network, you just have to have a spectrum to operate in,” he says. “The whole system is affordable and will get cheaper and cheaper.”

CBRS (Citizens Broadband Radio Service) is an open-licensing spectrum used by the U.S. Navy and is cited as a solution by Garner.

“It’s a very secure signal and has good speeds at 40 MHz bandwidth and 400 Mbps down and 100 Mbps up,” he says. “I’m talking off-the-shelf products you can buy from Samsung, Ericsson and such.”

Ukama and Qin are two additional companies at the forefront of private network construction.

“These startups are taking open-sourced software and commercializing it,” Garner explains. “This is not future technology; this is happening now.”

Ukama, a 2020 startup, jumped out of the gate with the offering of low-cost and managed end-to-end cellular connection, accessible to everyone. Basically, Ukama enables a landowner to set up a personal network, provides all hardware and software, and manages the lot.

“You can become your own AT&T,” says Ukama founder Kashif Ali, “and the data usage belongs to you. There are growers paying $5,000 to $10,000 per month to cover farms, but this will be highly economical and rapidly return ROI. I’m talking super cheap in comparison no matter how many miles or acres you need to cover.”

Farmers, Ali observes, are often afflicted by poor or expensive coverage. “Don’t wait five to 10 years for someone to bring 5G connectivity across your farm, when they haven’t even arrived with 4G. Private networks are the answer.”

A Factory Without Walls

After the past 30 years, Garner knows there’s plenty of skepticism, over-hype and big promises.

“For row-crop farms, maybe they’ll have to have their own cell towers or private networks, but the buildup farmers hear about, and understandably are sick of, is not going to come to fruition tomorrow, but it’s going to land in our lifetime,” Garner says. “All we’ve got to do is put the pieces together, and that’s why this is an exciting time to be in agriculture.”

High-speed internet is the gateway to everything. Technologies such as 5G, StarLink and private networks are all pieces of the puzzle to help farmers harvest this vital tool.

Trump Administration’s 5G Plans Move Ahead, Boosting Rural Internet

Wed, 18 Nov 2020 04:56:29 GMT

The Trump Administration and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) are moving forward with plans that would help rural America with Internet connectivity, potentially boosting commerce for agriculture.

During an announcement at the White House on April 12 , President Donald Trump and FCC Chairman Ajit Pai laid out the vision for the “race to 5G,” along with a Rural Digital Opportunity Fund plan.

President Trump said during his comments that moving from the current 4G cellular network to 5G will help farmers be more productive, make manufactures be more competitive, while creating a better healthcare system.

“It will transform the way our citizens work, learn, communicate and travel,” Trump said.

FCC plans to hold its third 5G spectrum auction on December 10, 2019. The auction would sell 3,400 megahertz in three different spectrum bands at one time. It would be the largest auction of 5G spectrum with two prior auctions only making 1,550 megahertz of spectrum commercially available.

“For those of you who are not wireless experts, that is a lot of spectrum,” Pai said.

Currently, FCC has been moving forward with the Facilitate America’s Superiority in 5G Technology plan, which includes three components:

Pushing more spectrum—the airwaves that enable communications—into the marketplace
Promoting 5G wireless infrastructure
Modernizing outdated regulations

As Pai and Trump noted there is a race to 5G, with much of the competition coming from China. Cisco projects that within three years the amount of 5G connections in North America will be twice the projected rate in Asia. Currently, the U.S. is the global leader in commercial 5G deployments, according to CTIA, a trade organization representing the U.S. wireless communications industry.

“The race to 5G is a race America must win, and it’s a race, frankly, that our great companies are now involved in. We’ve given them the incentive they need. It’s a race that we will win,” Trump added.

In addition to the 5G developments , FCC is also going to invest $20.4 billion into high-speed broadband networks across rural America during a 10 year period. The money would come from a yet to be created Rural Digital Opportunity Fund. Funding would go to a reverse auction to service providers that will deploy infrastructure providing up to gigabit-speed broadband in areas of the country most in need of connectivity.

“This money will extend high-speed broadband to up to 4 million homes and small businesses in rural America. These next-generation networks will bring greater economic opportunity to America’s heartland, including some of the great jobs building infrastructure, and they will help support future 5G technologies,” Pai said.

During the White House announcement Marty Smith, president elect of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, voiced his pleasure with seeing the investment in infrastructure.

“We really appreciate the fact that you have put this emphasis on rural America,” Smith said.

In a press release following the announcement the Rural & Agriculture Council of America (RACA) also expressed that the moves would benefit underserved areas of the country.

“These efforts demonstrate that private sector competition, not government nationalization of networks, is the best path forward to stimulating local economies and bridging the digital divide in rural communities across America,” said RACA Vice President Chris Skorupa.

To view the whole White House announcement watch the following video:

Stronger Broadband On The Way

Wed, 18 Nov 2020 04:54:09 GMT

When you’re running a business all you want is good cell coverage and a strong internet signal. If you’re in rural America, both of those can be hard to come by. That could change in the future.

The future of rural connectivity is promising because two factors have aligned to speed the development of broadband networks: the government has placed a priority on developing those networks, and private industry realizes a positive business case to build broadband infrastructure.

“Reliable broadband is critical for nearly every aspect of life, from education to health care to agriculture and beyond,” says Sonny Perdue U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. “By working across the federal government and by harnessing public-private partnerships as USDA has done for decades, we are doing all we can to bring reliable, affordable broadband to homes, farms, ranches, schools and healthcare sites throughout rural America.”

The 2018 farm bill provides funding to hurry rural high-speed broadband development. The bill expands loan and grant programs, strengthens interagency cooperation and prioritizes projects that bring access to underserved areas.

A USDA pilot program is offering $600 million in grants and loans to help build broadband capacity in sparsely-populated areas. The program provides non- and for-profit organizations, including local governments, the means to receive funds for infrastructure development and improvement. USDA will also provide a 25% matching grant, a 2% low-interest loan or a combination of both. A proposed rule is expected to be released in May, with three application periods between April and June and funds to be distributed beginning in the second half of 2019.

Speed is the key, as funded projects must create upload speeds of at least 25 megabits per second (mbps) and download speeds of 3 mbps. The Federal Communications Commission 2018 Broadband Deployment Report states 92.3% of all Americans had access to broadband at those speeds. However, only 68.6% have that access in rural areas, leaving more than 24 million Americans lagging behind.

In addition to the pilot program, the American Broadband Initiative released a report in February 2019 outlining recommendations for:

More towers. The Department of the Interior (DOI) mapped more than 7,000 new tower locations primarily in rural areas. These towers will be available to service providers seeking to locate equipment on federal property as they expand networks.
More assets. In addition to the DOI towers, the General Services Administration (GSA) will identify additional federal assets that can be used by service providers to expand into rural markets, ideally as a cost-saving opportunity.
Streamlined permitting. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration will publish information on current project workflows, providing a single location for information on federal permitting of broadband infrastructure. In addition, GSA will streamline the permitting process to “be more responsive to stakeholder needs.”

The federal government steps to improve broadband access are admirable, but they aren’t enough.

“This digital divide continues to hold rural America back in nearly all aspects of everyday life: healthcare, education, business investment and general economic development, farm income, civic engagement and even property values,” says Bill Laduca, sector vice president, electric distribution with CoBank.

A CoBank report cites a recent study conducted by Purdue University that estimates the state of Indiana would realize a net benefit of $12 billion if rural broadband investments were made statewide.

During the past few years, electric distribution cooperatives have been building fiber networks as a way to service underserved markets for the benefit of their own operations and their customers. Many of the electric cooperatives have entered into the broadband space through partnerships with other cooperatives.

Regardless of how the broadband infrastructure is built, many in rural America are missing out on technology their urban neighbors enjoy.

New App to Address Broadband Access

Three organizations have joined together to develop an app that aggregates broadband speeds from mobile devices to help identify gaps in coverage. Armed with that data, the National Association of Counties, the Rural Community Assistance Partnership and Rural LISC will advocate for broadband infrastructure funding.

TestIT (available for iOS and Android) allows users to be active participants in the national effort to bring awareness about the lack of high-speed internet connectivity in rural America. With the app, users can test their broadband speed from anywhere.

Snapshots of individual tests will be collected within a database, allowing partners to analyze connectivity data across the country. This data will bridge the gap between rural residents’ everyday experience and connectivity data provided by internet service providers, which is often inaccurate and inflated.

How does broadband stack up in your area? To find out, check out the map at bit.ly/stronger-broadband

Bridging the Digital Divide: Getting High-Speed Internet to Everyone

Wed, 18 Nov 2020 04:09:26 GMT

Rural broadband continues to get attention from Washington, as it works to bridge the digital divide.

Currently, some 24 million Americans live without access to high-speed internet. Earlier this month, the Federal Communications Commission voted to advance conversations around using so-called “TV white spaces” for internet in rural communities. White spaces are unused television frequencies.

Richard Cullen is the Executive Director of Connect Americans Now . He says those frequencies are the channels in between the channels which can be used to transmit broadband connectivity.

“There are a lot of companies that are looking at that, but we need to give them the regulatory certainty. That’s an economically-viable solution and the Federal Communications Commission is the main focus right now. They are looking at a number of existing rules to finalize them so that those companies can have the certainty they need, and the good news is the F.C.C. has already taken steps in that right direction, so I’m confident that we’re going to continue to have progress going forward,” says Cullen.

Money was also allocated in the latest farm bill to help improve rural America’s access to high-speed internet.

The Future of Ag Tech in the Midwest

Wed, 18 Nov 2020 02:53:17 GMT

The U.S. House Small Business Subcommittee on Agriculture, Energy and Trade discussed problems surrounding rural communities in the Midwest and solutions agricultural technology can continue to provide on Feb. 15, 2018.

The areas of improvement sought for Midwest ag tech include reaching young people, increasing funding and developing products that are acceptable to both farmers and consumers.

According to Sam Fiorelli, COO of the Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis, the development of new technology in agriculture has helped encourage young people to stay in or come back to rural communities.

“Young people who are tech savvy now have an outlet to put that love and understanding of technology to use in their communities,” says Fiorelli. “Imagine a kind of ‘Geek Squad’ in rural communities across America that can be deployed to help get a tech heavy piece of equipment up and running again in hours rather than days.”

Fiorelli says farmers and small businesses are also supported by ag tech innovation through open access to research centers’ core facilities like the Danforth Plant Science Center’s greenhouses. This helps small businesses gain access to research that would be costly for them to conduct on their own.

In order to continue improving rural communities, Kevin Kimle, director of the agricultural entrepreneurship initiative at Iowa State University, says there is still work to be done.

Kimle says improvements can continue through exposing more young people to the concept of entrepreneurship in high school and college and helping them find mentors who have done similar things.

Kimle also says developing more early stage funding and venture funds is crucial to furthering ag tech in the Midwest.

Outside of funding and education, a key part of getting technology in the hands of farmers is helping them see the value it brings to their operations says Peter Nelson, vice president of agricultural innovation at Memphis Bioworks Foundation and president of AgLaunch.

“Farmers have traditionally been at the forefront of developing & implementing new innovations and technologies,” says Nelson. “Over time, the role of the farmer in adopting new technologies, and this is key, has been one of customer rather than one as partner.”

Nelson says this change has created a disconnect between developers and producers. One solution the Memphis Bioworks Foundation has developed to solve this issue is the AgLaunch 365.

The program provides startup companies direct access to unbiased feedback through participating farmers. This helps improve products on the farm and ensures startups have greater success by solving technical issues early on.

However in order for ag tech to be successful in the future, new products must be acceptable to both farmers and consumers says Michael D. Fernandez, senior fellow at George Washington University Food Institute.

“The first generation of genetically engineered products was geared more toward farmers than to end consumers,” says Fernandez. “Consumers are evermore focused on food, what’s in it, where it comes from, how it’s produced and that trend isn’t going away. So the best way to build acceptance is to offer products that provide tangible benefits that consumers can embrace and be transparent about it.”