Introduction
Most plant based proteins are derived from the soya bean. Currently, the EU imports around 32 million tons of soya (mainly as processed soya meal) per year to feed its livestock. This makes the EU highly dependent on soya producing countries such as Brazil, Argentina and the US. Furthermore, the European production of legumes has been steadily declining over the last 50 years. The EU is thus increasingly dependent on other countries’ protein crops. It also has adverse effects on soil fertility, biodiversity and water quality due to over-farming with other crops and a shorter crop rotation.
This use case addresses the current lack of technological innovation in the cultivation and processing of protein plants. Through smart farming technologies, such as decision support systems and better sensor data to optimise machine task operations, this use case aims to reintroduce and increase soybean cultivation in the EU.
Get in touch with the use case team via the SmartAgriHubs Innovation Portal
Go to portalAchievements, products & services
Decision Support System for soybean growers to maximise yield and protein content
Information about production efficiency of different field zones through GIS based field management
Easy to install and movable IoT weather sensors
Mapping of protein grown on the field through NIR-sensor
Increased profit and optimised irrigation feature
Documentation of actions