Demand for Remote Field Monitoring Rises
Pessl Instruments, the company behind METOS® brand wireless, solar powered monitoring systems, has reported an upsurge in the number of remote monitoring stations requested around the world, due to the impact of Coronavirus and the need for farmers and agronomists to reduce unnecessary travel.
Gottfried Pessl, President and Founder of Pessl Instruments, explains that the closure of non-essential companies and travel restrictions has made remote field monitoring systems an urgent requirement for many farmers and growers.
“Every trip to the field costs time and money, but during the coronavirus outbreak it may be impossible to check on all crops. Remote field monitoring systems allow farmers and agronomists to reduce field visits to only when they are really necessary,” he says.
Pessl reveals they are already receiving an increase in orders. For example, large tomato growers in the US and Turkey want to install more soil moisture monitoring systems, alongside remote monitoring of insects, climatic conditions, soil nutrition and workforce tracking.
“Installing this equipment now will allow them to improve their risk management, while protecting the crop, the environment, their workers and continue to provide food to the population.”
In the UK, the Rural Payments Agency has paused farm inspections, while globally, the GLOBALG.A.P standards setting organization has extended certificates for six months, because inspectors are unable to travel to farms to perform audits.
“I believe that in the future, permanent and mobile Internet of Things (IoT) solutions, such as remote monitoring, will help government and standards agencies collect some of the data they need to make sure the food we eat is safe, without needing to travel so frequently,” says Gottfried.
Pessl Instruments is a global manufacturer of IoTs for farmers, including weather stations, soil moisture systems, insect traps, crop growth cameras, portable soil and tissue laboratories, trackers of various kinds, and the relevant decision support software.