The second annual IDEAg Interconnectivity Conference took place in Altoona, Iowa this week where the precision agriculture industry along with producers came together to discuss how to “connect” all the data that is being developed through precision agriculture.
During the show, I had a chance to learn more about the conference from Samantha Kaplan who is the marketing manager, events and expos for IDEAg along with several other farm shows. She said the show has grown out of the fact that precision agriculture is no longer an option, but rather a necessity – it’s required to help farmers increase their production and thus increase profits.
This year’s theme was the power of knowledge shared and the first day focused on local precision ag, whereas the second day looked at a more global perspective – how local precision agriculture is affecting and changing agriculture on a global scale.
Kaplan said that one session that has created a huge buzz was Kansas State Professor Kevin Price’s presentation about unmanned ariel technology, or drones. He brought in a couple of samples that he has been building and a drone, weighing less than 5 pounds can cover and analyze acres of farmland in a matter of hours. She said people were amazed.
His was just one speaker of many who provided informative sessions and the dialogue spurred during the event will continue among companies and producers as precision ag evolves. During the next few weeks, Kaplan said all the presentations will be available online.
Listen to my interview with Samantha here: [wpaudio url=”http://zimmcomm.biz/IDEAg/IDEAg13-kaplan.mp3″ text=”IDEAg Interconnectivity Conference A Success”]