At the World Economic Forum at Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 23, Yara International ASA, Oslo, and IBM, Armonk, N.Y., announced plans for an Open Farm & Field Data Exchange, inviting farmer associations, industry players, academia, and NGOs from the food and agriculture industry to join a movement to develop an open data exchange that facilitates collaboration around farm and field data, with the aim of improving the efficiency, transparency, and sustainability of global food production. They noted that today, farm and field data are typically dispersed, non-compatible, and inaccessible.
The two said sharing data would allow farmers to receive higher-value services and be paid in return for sharing their data. They said use of the open data exchange platform can also make it trustful for farmers and value chain players to meet potential regulatory requirements.
However, they noted concerns that stand in the way of collaboration, such as securing the benefits of sharing data broadly while respecting data privacy for farmers and protecting proprietary information.
Yara and IBM joined forces in April 2019, announcing plans to build the world’s leading digital farming platform (GM April 26, 2019).
“It is our collective responsibility to overcome siloes and work together to bring innovation to the way we produce food,” said Terje Knutsen, Yara Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing. “The transition towards a more sustainable food system requires data-driven customized solutions for every field and farm. Trusted data sharing is one key element where we can jointly make a difference which will benefit all, from farmers all the way to end consumers.”
“When IBM and Yara developed the first digital farming collaboration, we centered around a joint vision to make a real difference in increasing global farming yields in a sustainable way,” said Mark Foster, Senior Vice President, IBM Services and Global Business Services.
“We believe the agriculture industry needs to invest in exponential technologies such as AI, IoT, and big data to help address climate change and population growth as it threatens the world’s ability to produce enough food. Together with Yara, we are taking a major step towards transforming the global food system by inviting all food value chain players to join this collaborative movement to help feed the world more efficiently and sustainably,” Foster added.