10/07/2018
The expansion of modern information and communication technologies in agribusiness, considering both livestock and agriculture, is a reality in the world. And, according to industry experts, precision agriculture has developed a lot in recent decades in Brazil and, at the same time, has brought several challenges.
On this subject, we interviewed Gustavo Marques Mostaço, Master in Agricultural Engineering and PhD in Computer Engineering, at the Polytechnic School of the University of São Paulo, exclusively for the ABES Portal. He was part of the Brazilian group that presented proposals to the Study Commission on IoT and Smart Cities, during an event held in Egypt last May by the ITU – International Telecommunications Union (ITU), the specialized agency of the United Nations. for information and communication technologies (ICTs).
Mostaço participated in the activities remotely, always in line with the other members of the group, formed by João Alexandre Zanon and Rodrigo Santana dos Santos, both from Anatel, and Werter Padilha, coordinator of the ABES IoT Committee, who were present at the commission.
In the interview, Mostaço analyzes the evolution of Precision Agriculture (PA) in our country and details the proposal he presents to the ITU to contribute to the consolidation of the Smart Farming – the state of the art in the application of integrated technologies for smart agribusiness.
How, in your assessment, is the implementation of precision agriculture technologies in Brazil in livestock and agriculture activities?
Precision agriculture in Brazil has developed a lot in recent decades. Initially, it focused on the application of GPS technology for referencing and positioning, developing concepts such as the application of inputs at variable rates and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Currently, experts have considered PA as an agricultural production management system, in which technologies are developed and applied to optimize agricultural systems in their entirety and not just in some stages of the production process. At the same time, Precision Livestock Farming (or Precision Livestock Farming) emerged to deal, initially, with issues such as the individualization of animals and the thermal control of the environment. However, it has now evolved to address issues such as: food and nutrition, genetic improvement, animal health and welfare, treatment of emissions and effluents, and even logistics and traceability, involving several stakeholders along the value chain.
What are the main challenges in this current scenario?
Among the various challenges currently faced by Precision Agriculture and Animal Science, we have the difficulties in integrating the technologies proposed to solve isolated problems in agribusiness. In this sense, it is necessary to promote the integration of farm management with machines and assets, having them as actuating and input elements, respectively, working the general panorama towards the control and automation of processes, as is done in the industrial. I see the Internet of Things (IoT) playing a fundamental role in this process as it is an enabling agent for the exchange of information in a broad and efficient way.
Finally, work must be done to provide current technologies and expertise, helping the farmer to connect to the entire agricultural and animal husbandry supply chain. Also enable, through the systematic generation and organization of data, the adoption of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Business Intelligence (BI) systems, gaining important insights about stock, production and distribution of its resources, thus generating gains in production planning , productivity, production quantity, loss reduction, water conservation and finally, an increase in profit for the farmer. It is also possible to use data generated by the government for the development of agricultural policies.
What is the main scope of the proposal taken by Brazil to the ITU?
The main scope of our proposal was to suggest a scenario in which it is possible to relate modern Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to the needs of the entire livestock value chain, always aiming at improving productivity and sustainability in production. An example of this is the use of Internet of Things (IoT) technologies in order to provide full coverage of processes, collecting and transmitting data throughout the entire chain. To this new current, we give the name of Smart Livestock Farming or Intelligent Livestock, in which Precision Animal Science processes, Information Management Systems (SGI), agricultural automation and robotics are integrated.
How did the idea of presenting this proposal come about?
The first contact was made between Prof. Moacyr Martucci Jr., from the Polytechnic School of the University of São Paulo (Poli-USP), and Anatel, which allowed the identification of the need to create standards for IoT applications in rural areas. With this, it was concluded that it would be worthwhile to prepare a document to be presented at the ITU meeting in Cairo in May of this year. For this, a study group was created at Poli-USP to continue the discussions and preparation of the document. It was then that it was decided to focus on livestock, to address the needs of specific systems for this purpose.
Which institutions are involved?
During the process of preparing the document, we had the participation of several professors and researchers here at Poli-USP, as well as at Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie and Universidade Estadual Paulista “Júlio Mesquita Filho” (UNESP).
How was the presentation at the ITU?
The defense of the document and participation in the discussions at the ITU were very important moments, as the ITU plays a key role in the standardization of telecommunications around the world. I had the opportunity to participate in the discussions remotely, with the support of the Brazilian delegation there in Egypt, composed by Werter Padilha, from ABES, in addition to João Zanon and Rodrigo Santana, both from Anatel.
The content proposed in our document aroused the interest of several nations participating in the event, regardless of their technological level or their agricultural vocation, precisely because it proposed a systematization approach to agriculture and livestock, domains often kept in the background during the development of ICTs.
We received direct support, including during the discussions, from institutions such as ETRI (Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute), from South Korea, and from the NCC (Nigerian Communications Commission), from Nigeria, in addition to the interest in participating in the future development of countries, such as England, Senegal, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Togo, The Gambia and the Republic of Congo. The proposal was approved as a work item and we will have the full text discussed at the SG20 meeting in China next December
On this subject, we interviewed Gustavo Marques Mostaço, Master in Agricultural Engineering and PhD in Computer Engineering, at the Polytechnic School of the University of São Paulo, exclusively for the ABES Portal. He was part of the Brazilian group that presented proposals to the Study Commission on IoT and Smart Cities, during an event held in Egypt last May by the ITU – International Telecommunications Union (ITU), the specialized agency of the United Nations. for information and communication technologies (ICTs).
Mostaço participated in the activities remotely, always in line with the other members of the group, formed by João Alexandre Zanon and Rodrigo Santana dos Santos, both from Anatel, and Werter Padilha, coordinator of the ABES IoT Committee, who were present at the commission.
In the interview, Mostaço analyzes the evolution of Precision Agriculture (PA) in our country and details the proposal he presents to the ITU to contribute to the consolidation of the Smart Farming – the state of the art in the application of integrated technologies for smart agribusiness.
How, in your assessment, is the implementation of precision agriculture technologies in Brazil in livestock and agriculture activities?
Precision agriculture in Brazil has developed a lot in recent decades. Initially, it focused on the application of GPS technology for referencing and positioning, developing concepts such as the application of inputs at variable rates and Geographic Information Systems (GIS). Currently, experts have considered PA as an agricultural production management system, in which technologies are developed and applied to optimize agricultural systems in their entirety and not just in some stages of the production process. At the same time, Precision Livestock Farming (or Precision Livestock Farming) emerged to deal, initially, with issues such as the individualization of animals and the thermal control of the environment. However, it has now evolved to address issues such as: food and nutrition, genetic improvement, animal health and welfare, treatment of emissions and effluents, and even logistics and traceability, involving several stakeholders along the value chain.
What are the main challenges in this current scenario?
Among the various challenges currently faced by Precision Agriculture and Animal Science, we have the difficulties in integrating the technologies proposed to solve isolated problems in agribusiness. In this sense, it is necessary to promote the integration of farm management with machines and assets, having them as actuating and input elements, respectively, working the general panorama towards the control and automation of processes, as is done in the industrial. I see the Internet of Things (IoT) playing a fundamental role in this process as it is an enabling agent for the exchange of information in a broad and efficient way.
Finally, work must be done to provide current technologies and expertise, helping the farmer to connect to the entire agricultural and animal husbandry supply chain. Also enable, through the systematic generation and organization of data, the adoption of Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Business Intelligence (BI) systems, gaining important insights about stock, production and distribution of its resources, thus generating gains in production planning , productivity, production quantity, loss reduction, water conservation and finally, an increase in profit for the farmer. It is also possible to use data generated by the government for the development of agricultural policies.
What is the main scope of the proposal taken by Brazil to the ITU?
The main scope of our proposal was to suggest a scenario in which it is possible to relate modern Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) to the needs of the entire livestock value chain, always aiming at improving productivity and sustainability in production. An example of this is the use of Internet of Things (IoT) technologies in order to provide full coverage of processes, collecting and transmitting data throughout the entire chain. To this new current, we give the name of Smart Livestock Farming or Intelligent Livestock, in which Precision Animal Science processes, Information Management Systems (SGI), agricultural automation and robotics are integrated.
How did the idea of presenting this proposal come about?
The first contact was made between Prof. Moacyr Martucci Jr., from the Polytechnic School of the University of São Paulo (Poli-USP), and Anatel, which allowed the identification of the need to create standards for IoT applications in rural areas. With this, it was concluded that it would be worthwhile to prepare a document to be presented at the ITU meeting in Cairo in May of this year. For this, a study group was created at Poli-USP to continue the discussions and preparation of the document. It was then that it was decided to focus on livestock, to address the needs of specific systems for this purpose.
Which institutions are involved?
During the process of preparing the document, we had the participation of several professors and researchers here at Poli-USP, as well as at Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie and Universidade Estadual Paulista “Júlio Mesquita Filho” (UNESP).
How was the presentation at the ITU?
The defense of the document and participation in the discussions at the ITU were very important moments, as the ITU plays a key role in the standardization of telecommunications around the world. I had the opportunity to participate in the discussions remotely, with the support of the Brazilian delegation there in Egypt, composed by Werter Padilha, from ABES, in addition to João Zanon and Rodrigo Santana, both from Anatel.
The content proposed in our document aroused the interest of several nations participating in the event, regardless of their technological level or their agricultural vocation, precisely because it proposed a systematization approach to agriculture and livestock, domains often kept in the background during the development of ICTs.
We received direct support, including during the discussions, from institutions such as ETRI (Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute), from South Korea, and from the NCC (Nigerian Communications Commission), from Nigeria, in addition to the interest in participating in the future development of countries, such as England, Senegal, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Togo, The Gambia and the Republic of Congo. The proposal was approved as a work item and we will have the full text discussed at the SG20 meeting in China next December
Follow the other articles about this mission published on the ABES portal here:
Brazil's strategic participation in the ITU
Brazil presents an architecture proposal for Internet of Things devices at the ITU
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