Nuffield scholar explores AI potential

Treen Swift, a 2024 Nuffield Scholar, is studying the impact of artificial intelligence on the agriculture industry and the ways in which it may benefit.

Hailing from a 4200ha family-owned-and-run cropping operation near Parkes in NSW, where she farms up to 13 different cereal, oilseed, pulse and fibre crops with husband Mark, brother Bruce Watson and his wife, Karina, Treen is keen to understand how the new technology might reshape the sector.

The family is no stranger to Nuffield scholarships – both Mark and Bruce are former Nuffield scholars, and they both encouraged Treen to further her research in the field.

“The technology has progressed so much in recent years so just the amount of data we can now process is enormous,” said Treen. “So, where do those opportunities lie for agriculture? I could also see other fields and industries talking about it and I thought, ‘Why aren’t we talking about that in our industry?’

“Why aren’t we talking about how AI is going to benefit our businesses, whether it’s as simple as using number-plate recognition when we’re managing trucks coming in for deliveries, or the machinery space and what brands like Case IH are doing – I wanted to learn more.”

She had her chance at the United Nations’ Committee on World Food Security (CFS) event in Italy late last year, where she met Luca Ferrari, the Global Manager of Robotics for Case IH’s parent company, CNH. Luca invited her to visit CNH’s labs in Modena, where so much of the company’s technology is developed.

“It was a fascinating experience,” she said, opening her eyes to the progress being made in machinery and the potential for AI to assist farmers in managing the increasingly complex regulatory space, particularly with regards to emissions and environmental impacts.

“Looking more at practices that are less reliant on chemical use is one area where there is a lot of interest in Europe at present, and I can certainly see a role for AI in this space,” she said. “Emissions reduction is another area of global focus and with so much data around it, the average farmer will need help in processing this.

“I don’t have the means to put on extra people to crunch those numbers, so I’ll need a tool to help do this quickly and efficiently, in order to ensure my business remains profitable, sustainable and viable in the future.”

Treen was able to see the benefits of the increasingly sophisticated machinery being developed by Case IH for herself, when her family farm had the opportunity to trial new Case IH AF Series combines late last year.

Case IH’s new AF Series has only just been launched in Australia, with limited numbers of AF9 and AF10 combines available to order for the 2025 harvest. The company says the series has been redesigned from the ground up to maximise capacity and crop flow with efficient horsepower, simplified maintenance and connectivity built-in at the base.

And the hardware got a thorough workout, too, under the added pressure of forecast rain.

“We were pushing pretty hard to get as much grain off as we could before the rain, and we were very grateful the new headers were there at that time and we got the opportunity to trial them. They were pushed hard,” Treen said.

“We'd just put in a large grain storage handling facility, and I think the AF9 and AF10 arrived on day two or three of us being able to use the dump hopper. So, it was straight from the paddock and unloaded quickly. I think we moved about 1500-plus tonnes of grain out of the paddocks one of the days they were there. They were really impressive and we can certainly see how much value one of them would bring to our business with their significant capacity.”

Treen’s Nuffield study into AI is ongoing, but she’s optimistic about the future and the ways in which agriculture may benefit from AI.

“By harnessing AI’s capabilities for applications within our industry, we have so much to gain with increased productivity, and better-informed decision-making from an economic and environmental perspective,” she said. “This will help reinforce our competitiveness on the global stage and drive greater sustainability to ensure we can be proud of what we’re leaving for future generations of farmers.”

Photo (from left): Bruce Watson, Mark Swift and Treen Swift recently had the opportunity to trial a couple of cutting-edge Case IH AF Series combines on their Parkes (NSW) grain farm