Future farming: Top 5 agriculture tech trends for 2024

The rate at which technology is transforming the agricultural sector continues to accelerate, offering farmers an endless array of innovative solutions to enhance productivity, sustainability and profitability of their operation.

Is 2024 the year when self-driving tractors take over as you watch them work from a distance, cuppa in hand and with more spare time than you know what to do with? We don’t think so, but with each year, machines help ease the load that little bit more.

Here is our breakdown of the five farm tech trends we predict for 2024, as we embrace the future of farming Down Under.

As farms around the world shift to more sustainable practices, technology is allowing producers to grow more while having less of an impact on the natural environment - increasing the profitability of farming operations in the process.

Internet of Things (IoT) devices and smart farming technologies, effectively offering an interconnected ecosystem of sensors, are allowing farmers to better monitor and manage things like soil condition, weather, water usage, crop health and livestock.

In fact, Deloitte predicts that the installed base of IoT endpoints globally for precision crop farming, livestock management and agricultural equipment tracking will be close to 300 million by the end of 2024.

What do these IoT endpoints achieve, though? Essentially, the IoT devices gather data on soil type, moisture, weather conditions and more, interfacing with farm management platforms to allow farmers to make better informed decisions.

The ‘precision agriculture’ this technology allows means water and fertiliser use can be carefully calculated, predictive planting can be undertaken factoring in microclimate data and soil quality, and then real-time crop health can be monitored.

Livestock implications include virtual fences; using GPS tracking, audio stimuli and benign electrical signals; containing cattle and even allowing farmers to optimise things like grazing time and location, cattle health monitoring and more.

According to Deloitte, Australian farmers trialling the technology have used motion sensor technology to successfully analyse cattle movement, then using the data to increase productivity by around 20 per cent.

This shift towards sustainable farming improves profitability for farmers right now, but also guarantees the long-term viability of farms into the future - as environmental pressures change the way we farm.

The data revolution taking place across the agricultural industry has made cloud-based solutions more valuable than ever, as colossal amounts of data trickle in from farms around the world.

In fact, by 2036, the amount of data collected on farms will increase by more than 800 per cent, according to research by the International Data Corporation (IDC).

Cloud-based applications utilise the data collected on farms, allowing collaboration between agronomists, farmers and researchers spanning areas like crop management, soil monitoring and farm mapping.

Last year, Bayer and Microsoft announced a partnership that offers AgTech developers a universal cloud-based platform to build on, combining the Microsoft Azure Data Manager for Agriculture platform and Bayer AgPowered Services.

The platform is capable of pulling data from satellites, field sensors, drones, field equipment and soil sensors, putting it all in one place for use by farmers and AgTech companies - meaning they don’t have to build a platform from scratch.

We predict platforms like this will lower the barrier of entry for AgTech providers in 2024, by offering a readily-available starting point, which can only mean good things for the broader agricultural industry.

While Australia lags behind the rest of the world in its adoption of electric farm machinery, in part due to the limited options available, more models are entering the market and we expect to see some farmers taking the plunge - ditching diesel for battery power.

After all, the Australian passenger car market exploded in 2023 with electric vehicle sales up 161 per cent - with a total 87,217 emission-free vehicles sold, representing around 7.2 per cent of the total market.

Much of that growth came down to improved options and availability, alongside the lower operating and servicing costs electric vehicles boast. On a farm, though, the machinery will have to prove it is up to the task in harsh Australian conditions.

Major tractor players are readying their electric models, with many lifting the covers across 2023, and this year spells the beginning of commercially available electric tractors around the world.

Fendt is one such manufacturer, set to launch its e100 V Vario electric tractor in the fourth quarter of 2024 - but it won’t reach Australia until it has proved itself in pilot markets of Germany, Norway and the Netherlands.

For farmers in the market for a new telehandler, JCB launched its 525-60E electric telehandler late last year offering all the same capabilities of the diesel 525-60, without the noise or emissions.

On the lighter end of the spectrum, electric UTV and farm bike options are limited in Australia, but options like the Polaris XP Kinetic, offering big power and torque, may change the tune of farmers hesitant to kick combustion engines.

Another manufacturer aiming to offer electrified options to the farm market is Ubco with its 2x2 electric bike, which we tested back in 2019.

The Ubco 2x2 has an impressive 150kg payload, 120km range and top speed of 50km/h, so it just might be a suitable replacement for all the humble Yamaha AG200s doing service out there.

While tractors won’t be driving themselves this year, a wave of AI and self-driving technology is coming, and it may not be too long before they are self-steering around the paddock.

California-based ag start-up, Monarch Tractor, already has its ‘driver-optional’ MK-V tractors out in service.

The all-electric MK-V also has deep learning capabilities, allowing it to process data and offer real-time implement adjustments, long-term yield estimates and more.

John Deere has also confirmed it will launch an autonomous electric tractor in Australia in 2026, with local trials set to take place in the leadup.

“Machinery of this kind will create a monumental shift, not only for John Deere as a manufacturer, but also for Australian agriculture,” said John Deere Australia and New Zealand Production System Manager, Steph Gersekowski, at the Hort Connections in Brisbane back in 2022.

In the meantime, John Deere’s 7, 8 and 9 series tractors now come standard with the StarFire 7000 integrated GPS receiver and G5Plus CommandCenter Display, adding autonomous capabilities to the existing range.

Yanmar also recently released an electric tractor concept, the e-X1, which can be controlled remotely and is designed for use in extreme or hazardous environments.

The cab-less e-X1 may also feature autonomous driving capabilities, with Yanmar confirming it is considering incorporating self-driving features into the model.

A common benefit across the various autonomous machines on the horizon is the fact finding a driver won’t be hard at all - solving the labour shortage one tractor at a time. While we might not see too many cab-less tractors in 2024, we expect to see more trials popping up.

Agriculture is among Australia’s most significant sectors, accounting for around 11 per cent of the nation’s GDP, and that result is achieved by more than 85,000 farm businesses that keep the dream alive.

In fact, the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) estimates the value of production will be $78 billion - made up of $46 billion crop and $32 billion livestock values - for the 2023-24 period.

It’s no surprise then that the AgTech industry is booming Down Under, offering a competitive edge in a sector with tight margins and ever-changing conditions; as tech like the Internet of Things (IoT) gets producers closer to perfecting precision crop farming, livestock management and equipment tracking.

The key to future-proofing this industry is working with the technology, not against it, but also knowing when good ol’ fashioned human touch is still the best option. A self-driving UTV? No thanks!