Canada-based processed potato producer McCain Foods has launched Presia Ag Insights.
A newly formed business unit wholly owned by McCain, Presia is the result of a decade of collaboration to develop digital technologies, supporting farmers in building resiliency within their operations, according to a news release.
With Presia, farmers and crop-sourcing partners can better evaluate and predict crop yields, optimize harvest timing and enhance on-farm sustainability practices, the release said. Specializing in satellite-based, data-driven intelligence that can transform the way we understand crop growth, Presia aims to accelerate the future of farming and foster the monitoring and adoption of regenerative agricultural practices by stakeholders across the agriculture sector, the release said.
“Launching Presia advances McCain’s innovative agriculture agenda, providing an opportunity to build off the expertise we have developed in potatoes to offer leading capabilities to other food businesses and farmers,” Peter Dawe, chief growth and strategy officer at McCain Foods, said in the release. “It is driving data intelligence that is helping us change the way we grow a potato.”
McCain says Presia is the evolution of its 2022 acquisition of a predictive crop portfolio from Resson. That portfolio includes vision-intelligence-based technologies that better leverage field data and satellite imagery to assess more accurately the status of a potato crop, the company says. The Resson team that managed the predictive crop intelligence portfolio joined McCain in June 2022; over the past year, the team — and product — has continued to evolve and is ready to launch under the Presia banner, according to the release.
“Presia supports our farmer and crop-sourcing partners in building resiliency within their operations and strengthening decision-making capabilities through the use of satellite imaging and machine learning,” Tyler Hennick, managing director of Presia, said in the release. “We are proud to offer existing and new customers more frequent and accurate readings on their in-season crop performance within and across entire fields and regions.”
The insights from Presia’s data and models will help its customers better manage their crops, support earlier yield estimates with greater accuracy, and improve crop monitoring and sampling efficiency, the release said. While the focus is currently on potatoes, Presia’s data and models could be expanded to other crops in the future, according to the release.
