TRADITION AND TECHNOLOGY WILL SHAPE THE FUTURE OF FARMING
▶ Chief of American University of Sharjah Enterprises says local needs are local opportunities
A return to traditional forms of farming will help to increase crop yields in regions starved of water and fertile soil, agricultural experts said.
An online conference hosted by the EU and the UN World Food Programme assessed challenges facing the agricultural industry in the face of the coronavirus pandemic.
The WFP estimated that about 270 million people face food insecurity, double the number before the beginning of the pandemic, as a result of disrupted supply chains and job losses.
As part of the UN Food Systems Summit, panellists revealed how those issues were being addressed.
Hussain Al Mahmoudi, chief executive of American University of Sharjah Enterprises and Sharjah Research, Technology and Innovation Park, said the UAE was focusing on local solutions to local problems.
“We need to design practical solutions to create the right models to address local needs and local opportunities,” he said.
“In this part of the world, agri-tech is an attractive word to throw around, but we need to educate and work with young people to make it more effective.
“There is not one answer or solution; the UAE has its own situation.
“There are some great technologies out there, but there is a disconnect and this is one of the challenges that we have.”
One project by students at SRTI Park uses artificial intelligence to monitor fish movements and measure when and how much they eat, so farming them can be made more efficient.
The park is also a centre for vertical farms, hydroponics (soil-free farming) and water recycling, which uses fish faeces as a crop fertiliser.
Prof Andrew Lowe, director of food innovation and chairman of plant conservation biology at the University of Adelaide, said vineyards were using technology to maximise limited water resources in the wine-producing Riverland region of South Australia.
“Computer vision can now recognise when crops will flower and fruit, which enables farmers to be more precise with their harvest,” Prof Lowe said.
“We are seeing regenerative farming practices and cover crops grown between rows of vines to build up carbon in the soil and encourage water retention.
“Simple things like planting hedgerows reserved for bees can also service crops reliant on pollinators.”
Prof Lowe said the technique can increase productivity by 25 per cent to 50 per cent, and is a solution that can work alongside AgriTech.
More sustainable livestock farming is a potential answer to some issues surrounding global hunger.
“We have seen an awakening [to] some of the problems with livestock systems,” Prof Lowe said.
“Land use and water sources can be taken over by livestock, but there is rarely an alternative in parts of the world where intensive agriculture would not work.
“But in much of the developed world, we are seeing a mass over-consumption of meat.
“About 100 kilograms of meat a year is consumed per person in Australia – four times the recommended annual limit by the WHO.
“Alternative diets such as vegan, flexitarian or vegetarian will help promote better health and changes to meat production.”
Efficient, inclusive and resilient food systems underpin the WFP’s Zero Hunger agenda. The UAE has become one of the leading WFP donors, since 2018 providing $650 million to support the programme’s operations.
But the rapid rise in hunger taking hold around the world suggested food systems require a major transformation.
Katja Seidenschnur, Nestle’s sustainability director for Europe, Middle East and North Africa, said change is already under way.
“If we go back to natural soils and traditional agriculture, a lot of the problems will be solved by themselves,” she said.
“Nature does not need technology or data, and we want to work with farmers to protect biodiversity.
“The consumer can help by switching to more plant-based diets, and we want to support that to help change their behaviour.
“You can change habits quite easily when you realise there are more plant-based alternative foods out there now.”
The WFP put the number of people who live with food insecurity at 270 million after a year of the Covid-19 pandemic