From cow loos to dog fitbits: 20 ways technology will transform the countryside in 2020 – Countryliving (UK)

Rural communities often take solace in the continuity associated with country life. Cities are the place for change, while our countryside is to be treasured for its slower pace. This can make the prospect of new ways of working a daunting one. But not all change is negative some technology increases productivity in farming, some benefits the environment.

Some things do need to change. The National Farmers Union (NFU) has pledged that the industry will reduce greenhouse emissions to zero by 2040, which means farmers are having to come up with eco-friendly ways to meet growing demand.

People often think of agriculture as conservative and slow to adapt, but it has always been about experimentation and trying new things, says Dr Helen Ferrier, chief science and regulatory affairs adviser at the NFU. Technology has a history of making life easier, replacing some jobs and creating new ones, adds Farmers Guardian editor Ben Briggs.

If new technologies help to make agriculture more profitable, they should be welcomed. So, let us introduce 20 innovations that could be coming to a field near you

We all want animals to live stress-free, but how do you ask a pig how its feeling? Scientists at Bristol Robotics Laboratory are using 3D scanners to find out. The machines use artificial intelligence to identify emotions on the animals faces. Farmers could eventually use similar technology to check that their pigs arent in pain or distress, thereby improving animal welfare.

Ammonia and nitrogen pollution harms more than 60% of UK land by acidifying soil and fresh water, and destroying plants. Unfortunately, cows and their bodily functions are partly to blame. But Dutch designer Henk Hanskamp might have the answer: a cow loo. Cows will pay a visit voluntarily (their daily feed given nearby as encouragement), toxins will then be removed from the waste, with the remainder used as fertiliser. The machine could be on sale in the Netherlands in 2020, before it is exported abroad.

Soon, everything and everyone in National Parks could be connected to the internet. Rubbish bins will send alerts to rangers when theyre full, so that they only have to be checked when they need emptying, reducing emissions, while sensors in footpaths will call out rangers to deal with fallen trees and flooding. Signposts at the end of a route will also be sending messages to your oven to have supper ready for when you arrive home well, we can dream, cant we?

Suffolk Punch horses, Britains oldest native breed, once happily ploughed our fields, but now they are dying out, with only about 70 breeding females left. What to do? Equine reproduction specialists Stallion AI Services has found a way to determine the gender of semen so that it can impregnate a filly with a female foal. More breeding females mean more horses in years to come

The ethics of egg-farming can make for uncomfortable reading: farmers require female chickens, as they lay the eggs, leaving the difficult question about what to do with the males. All chicks in Britain are incubated to full term, but German company Seleggt has found a way to determine the sex of a chick before it is born by testing a fluid sample from the egg. Males can then be used in animal feed before they hatch. Seleggt eggs are already sold in Germany and the company hopes to expand across Europe soon.

Meet Tom, Dick and Harry, three autonomous planters that are currently being tested in Hampshire by Waitrose & Partners; Harry plants, Tom places soil on top and Dick zaps weeds with lasers. Being smaller and lighter than tractors, these four-wheeled machines reduce compaction of the soil, improving yields. Theyre also pretty good workers. Small Robot Company CEO Ben Scott-Robinson says, People get tired, but robots dont nor do they get distracted. Robots would support rather than replace farmers, he says, adding that the technology needs further trials.

Almost half the dogs in the UK are overweight, according to vet charity PDSA. The solution? A canine activity tracker attached to your pets collar, monitoring his or her movements and how many calories they are burning. PitPat can tell you whether your dog has been playing, running or walking (39, pitpat.com), while FitBark (65, fitbark.com/store-uk) can also track your dogs sleep restless nights could indicate health problems.

A third of our wild bees and hoverflies are in decline, according to a 2019 study by the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, but help is on the way in the form of tiny bee-like drones that fly between plants and cross-pollinate them. Created by Harvard University, the solar-powered RoboBee X-Wing can flap its two sets of wings at a rate of 170 beats per second. Growers could use similar drones in greenhouses within five to 10 years.

Farms floating in harbours could make food more sustainable by reducing how far produce travels to consumers while also increasing the land available for agriculture. In Rotterdam, 32 Meuse-Rhine-Issel cows are helping to test this very notion, living on a 30m x 30m, three-storey pontoon, in a project by Dutch property company Beladon. The team is looking to expand into China and one day it could happen here

Almost a third of Britons believe well all be happily chomping away at insects by 2029, according to the Agricultural Biotechnology Council. Insects are great sources of protein, while farming them requires little space and water, and releases fewer greenhouse gases than conventional animal farms. Want a taster? Sainsburys already sells snack-sized packs of grasshoppers, crickets, buffalo worms and mealworms, produced by Eat Grub in the Netherlands (from 4.29 for 20g, also from eatgrub.co.uk), while Selfridges stocks chocolate-chip cricket cookies (5.99, in store only), produced by Bug Farm Foods in St Davids, Wales.

In New Zealand, drones are increasingly taking on sheepdog duties and farmers are now trying them over here. Mark Rutter, of Harper Adams University in Shropshire, thinks its more ethical: sheep happily follow drones, as they already lead them to food, whereas they only obey dogs because they see them as predators. Drones can also cover a fair bit of ground (about four miles), dont mind hilly terrain and wont leave muddy paw prints on the carpet. A basic model such as the DJI Mavic Pro 2 can handle winds of up to 24mph and costs roughly 1,300. Drones that work in the rain cost nearer 6,000. Farmers dont need a licence, but they should be aware of the risks, especially to birds. They also dont like to be scratched behind the ears

Sometimes it just isnt possible to cross the country to see wildlife, but now it can come to you. Webcams run by The Wildlife Trusts follow grey seals in Cumbria and puffins in Alderney, allowing you to watch them from your phone or computer (wildlifetrusts.org/webcams). Most activity takes place from the spring, but theres plenty of grass-munching year-round at The Donkey Sanctuary in Sidmouth, Devon (thedonkeysanctuary.org.uk/webcams).

Wondering where your food really comes from? Started by two farmers, new app Happerley allows you to find out where food is produced by scanning the QR code on the packaging. About 250 food and drink producers have signed up, including Simon Weaver Organic in the Cotswolds, Hayes Fruit Farm in Gloucestershire and Grass Fed Meats, which operates across the UK. Happerley is free and available on the App Store and Google Play.

New energy sources are vital as we move away from fossil fuels and grass could be a solution. In Lincolnshire, the local council, the Environment Agency and The Wildlife Trusts have been turning roadside cuttings into electricity. A tractor-like machine sucks up the grass and takes it to an anaerobic digestor, which converts it into energy. It is estimated that Lincolnshires 5,500 miles of rural roads could generate a years worth of electricity for 4,500 homes.

In the US, you can already buy burgers and meatballs made of meat grown in labs from animal stem cells, while in Europe, Netherlands-based Mosa Meat predicts its product could be in supermarkets within four years. Still hesitant? Conventional farming will continue to have a place. The NFUs Dr Helen Ferrier says lab-grown meat will simply start a useful conversation about what people want to eat.

Most of the prawns we eat in the UK come from farms in the Far East and Central America, but the future could be different. Great British Prawns, the worlds first sustainable, clean-water, land-based prawn farm, in Balfron, Stirlingshire, began harvesting a million prawns last summer, selling them to nearby chefs. The company is now planning more farms to supply restaurants across the UK.

Sompong Sriphet / EyeEmGetty Images

Good news for professional gardeners and groundsmen RootWave has patented a wand-like device that zaps weeds with an electric pulse, killing them without chemicals and allowing them to decompose in the soil. The zapper is already available to commercial growers, and CEO Andrew Diprose hopes a version will eventually be available for hobby gardeners.

In 2019, there was a shortfall of 6,000 soft-fruit pickers in the UK. More robots to the rescue. Hall Hunger Farm, near Chichester, West Sussex, is trying out machines on wheels with 3D cameras and four sets of grippers. Designed by the University of Plymouths Fieldworks Robotics lab, the machines (below) are expected to go into production within a year.

Fruit and vegetables could be grown in some of the UKs 150,000 abandoned coal mine shafts, predicts Professor Saffa Riffat, president of the World Society of Sustainable Energy Technology. This would reduce the environmental costs of transporting food from far away, as well as cutting the need for pesticides. Salads grown in tunnels in south-west London are already sold through Ocado (Growing Underground, 2.59 for 70g, ocado.com).

Want to cut down on garden plastic? Bristol-based start-up Candide Labels has devised an app that identifies plants and creates virtual labels you store on your phone. Simply hold your camera-phone up to a plant and tap the screen, enabling it to identify the plant and tag it. Candide is free and available on the App Store and Google Play.

This feature is from Country Living magazine. Subscribe here.

Like this article? Sign up to our newsletter to get more articles like this delivered straight to your inbox.

SIGN UP

Read the original here:
From cow loos to dog fitbits: 20 ways technology will transform the countryside in 2020 - Countryliving (UK)