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Senior Innovation Manager - Technology
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Senior Program Manager, Coffee
Soil degradation is a growing threat to agricultural productivity, smallholder farmer incomes, and global food security. Varied estimates suggest that 20-40% of the Earth’s land area is either degraded or degrading, and around 70% has been altered to some degree.¹ Furthermore, since healthy soil is a key carbon sink, land degradation contributes to increased GHG emissions that fuel climate change.
具有讽刺意味的是，尽管现有的粮食系统受到这种降解的影响，但它们也有助于土壤的降解，尤其是在常规农业实践下的土壤降解。统计数据表明，全球粮食系统约占森林砍伐的80％，占淡水使用的70％，是生物多样性损失的最大贡献者。2
有很多方法可以减少降解；再生农业代表了我们的最佳选择之一。今年早些时候在2022年ICTforAg conference，与部门专家一起，我们分享了关于数字工具如何促进再生农业过渡并有助于改善土壤的观点。在这里观看完整的IctForregenag演示文稿。
寻找降解的解决方案
再生农业是一种恢复土地质量和土壤健康的方法，在食品系统中迅速增强了势头。再生农业是一种整体农业方法，可恢复和维持生态系统，处于健康和弹性状态，重点是土壤健康。这种方法在农民一级产生社会和经济影响。
越来越多的证据表明，采用再生农业实践具有超出土壤健康的几个好处，包括提高产量，对气候和天气影响的更大弹性以及粮食系统排放的减少。4, 5还可以说，通过减少对外部投入的依赖和相应的价格波动，这些做法也可以提高农民的经济韧性。
但是，有几个障碍使过渡到再生农业具有挑战性。最重要的是，由于做法的转变，过渡通常伴随着暂时收益损失的风险，这可能会导致最初几年的农场水平收入降低。此外，如果没有通过合理的技术知识和降低风险策略来促进过渡，则可能会导致长期损害生产力和收入。这些风险加剧了以下事实：低收入国家和中等收入国家的小农户通常没有能力或资源来使所需的投资和天气现金流短缺可能导致生产力损失。
Using digital tools to smooth the transition to regenerative agriculture
对农业中数字工具的兴趣日益增加，代表了扩大再生实践采用的机会。在2020年，IDH in partnership with GSMA profiled over 700 digital service providers from the Global Souththat are offering a wide range of services, including extension support, market linkages, access to finance, tools to improve the efficiency and commercial viability of smallholder farming and reduce the environmental footprint of agriculture.6
尽管首先，再生农业和数字农业似乎并不是自然合作伙伴，但有几种协同作用可以支持两者的扩展。有多种方式可以使用数字工具来促进更平滑的过渡，因为小农采用再生实践。
Here are six of these use-cases to show how digital tools can be used to facilitate the transition:
- Using communication channels to standardize production principles:The transition to regenerative agriculture from conventional requires an increased awareness at the origin of supply chains and followed subsequently by a shift in production principles such as no-till cultivation, mulching, on-farm composting or cover cropping. There is also a requirement for to follow these principles at a landscape level, hence, requiring some-degree of standardization based on localized contexts. In these scenarios, digital tools can be used to standardize and provide extension services via SMS, Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD), Interactive Voice Response, or bulk-messaging channels such as WhatsApp. Compared to in-person training, digital tools can be cost-effective, allow for mass-outreach, and limit deviation from the core message.
- Applying data-driven prescriptive and predictive advisory to mitigate production risk:Technologies, such as remote sensing and Internet-of-Things (IoT), can support the collection of localized data, including soil composition, weather, biodiversity and more. This localized data can inform customized prescriptive advisory to smallholder farmers. Data-backed advisory can also reduce the costs associated with nutrition, pest, and water management and increase productivity. Alongside prescriptive support, the data collected across farming seasons coupled with machine learning can be used to provide predictive advisory for pest and disease management, which allows farmers to take pre-emptive action to mitigate productivity risks. It is important to note that accurate modelling requires large quantum of structured data, which could take several years to accumulate. Data-sharing partnerships and open data ecosystems are a way to facilitate the quicker development of such data stacks for public good (Read our previous blog on data sharing here。）。
- 引入数字聚合和市场联系以改善采购的经济学：为了为再生农业生产创建可持续的商业案例，生产商必须用足够的量提供一致的供应。但是，小农很难在没有汇总的情况下获得必要的量。通过对农场数据进行数字化以优化物流，可以预测生产量，提供质量评估并在收获之前为潜在买家提供信息。基于这些承诺，数字工具可用于将再生农业计划与其他利益相关者（例如融资组织，捐助者和民间社会）联系起来。来源去年推出的是，它是一个将可持续和再生农业采购领域与全球志趣相投的合作伙伴联系起来的平台。
- 通过数据支持的财务和付款来建立经济韧性：过渡到再生农业的关键挑战是缺乏可用的融资来发起和降级过渡。数字化农场数据和远程监控可以对农民的商业模式和潜在风险创造透明度，从而可以提高农民的信誉。该信息可用于贷款发起，并将农民与金融机构联系起来。此外，如果提前建立市场联系，则可以使用买方承诺来部分抵消风险并使信贷更加负担得起。
除商业资本外，在物联网用例中，当农民遵循特定做法时，传感器可以触发基于结果的融资。例如，灌溉系统可以配备物联网传感器，以监视用水量并奖励优化用水的农民。同样，如果实现某些结果（例如改善的土壤健康），则基于物联网的智能合约可以自动触发付款。用于数字工具的最新用例是促进碳市场上的贸易。数字工具可以降低监视碳固还有的成本，证明碳信用额以及使买卖双方之间的交易。 - 利用端到端的可追溯性，以达到价格：Digital platforms can help regenerative agriculture programs connect with global buyers offering price premiums. Farm-to-fork or jurisdictional traceability are a prerequisite for such premiums. Digital traceability solutions enable buyers to map whether produce is sourced from a verified or certified sourcing area and build an assurance value for premiums to be paid. These price premiums could help farmers overcome some of the risk of revenue loss from transitioning.
- Using remote monitoring for course-correction and learning:例如，有用于检查植物健康，土壤成分的变化，休耕地的变化以及其他可持续性指标的用例。这些数据有助于农民了解实践是否取得了理想的结果，并且还允许及时进行课程校正。数字工具还可以实现负担得起的生产成本的真实成本核算，该成本可用于建立价格溢价的业务案例。在没有数字化的情况下，收集和分析此类数据是昂贵的，并且经常延迟。[作为免责声明，重要的是要强调，基于卫星的遥感目前可能不适合不统一的小农场，有多种农作物，有覆盖的裁剪和地面植被，与有组织的单杂料相比农场。]
The article leverages insights from the IDH co-curated Session on ICTforRegenerative Agriculture at the ICTforAg2022 Conference. The session was made possible due to contributions of the following speakers:
- Annelies Withofs, Programme Manager, IKEA Foundation
- Kunal Prasad, Chief Operating Officer, CropIn Technologies
- Tanja Lubbers，Agrocares
3请注意：Regenerative agriculture in and by itself does not necessarily create this impact; hence, it is important to be intentional towards these impact areas while delivering a regenerative agriculture program.