Belje uses two drones for monitoring its arable land.
The most advanced agricultural production in the region has been presented recently at the Belje company’s fields in Mirkovci. It includes modern tractors with supplementary machines and drones. Such precision farming in Belje was enabled by significant investments into the last generation of agricultural machinery for all farming phases, from planting to harvesting, reports Poslovni.hr on March 30, 2016.
Since last year, Belje has been using two drones to monitor its arable land, and it has now presented a new drone which has been adapted for the use in agriculture. With its increased range, it enables detailed recording of large plots of arable land of 100 hectares or more. The data collected from drones is being transferred to a modern GIS system that Belje has developed for its needs.
Technologists are processing the information within this system and creating maps which are transferred to computers of the satellite-navigated tractors. This means that the plant receives the required amount of fertilizer, no more and no less than the optimal amount determined via the computer program. In this way, Belje protects the environment and saves on the application of fertilizer, but they also spend less time touring the fields and monitoring the state of the crops.
Davor Bošnjaković, the CEO of director explained: “By using drones we have reduced the cost of raw materials and increased the work productivity, as well as the environmental component of crop production. As Belje has 20,000 hectares of arable land, we are now, in collaboration with experts, developing drones of greater range and broader functionality for the needs of agricultural production. The technology is quickly entering the world of agriculture and we are keeping in step in order to use all the opportunities and increase the quality and quantity of products.”
After the presentation at the Belje farmland, a broader concept of precise fertilization was demonstrated at Agro Academy with specific examples of the use of computer systems developed for the purpose of precision farming.
