Yara International ASA and German-based John Deere Walldorf GmbH & Co. reported on Sept. 26 that they have joined forces to launch a partnership that will combine Yara’s agronomic expertise with John Deere’s precision technology and advanced machinery.
The companies said the partnership will enable farmers to increase yields and optimize fertilizer use, helping them contribute to the ambition of the European Union’s Farm to Fork Strategy. The new connectivity will be piloted from spring 2024 to a group of farmers in Germany, France, and the UK.
Yara’s Atfarm platform uses the company’s proprietary optimized index, which enables farmers to monitor the biomass development of their crops and nitrogen uptake throughout the season and access field-specific variable rate application maps. The partners said this data can be seamlessly shared as a WorkPlan with the John Deere Operations Center™. Farmers can add operational details and wirelessly synchronize the plans, including prescriptions, to any machine featuring the John Deere Gen4 or Gen5 Display.
In addition, Yara and John Deere will continue to collaborate on additional opportunities to further improve nutrient use efficiency for farmers. They said initial trials show that farmers can achieve up to 7% yield increase while securing up to 14% nitrogen savings in fertilizer use.