The Tech World Had The Chance To Meet Real Farmers At CES, And The Reaction Was Surprisingly Good
The global tech industry gathered at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas this past week to see the latest and greatest in technology and this year, agriculture took center stage. What’s traditionally been a show geared to consumers is one agriculture is playing a bigger role, and as Farm Journal discovered, the interest in agriculture’s story became a resounding theme.
From driverless vehicles to a flying car, CES was full of the latest technology and a few surprises. One popular attraction was at the John Deere booth. Not only was each area of the display equipped with farming facts for consumers, the company also served up the chance for attendees to meet- and speak- with real farmers.
“We actually are a vertically integrated company–we take rice from the farm to a finished product. And we even have our own brand now called 4Sisters,” says Meryl Kennedy, a farmer in northeast Louisiana.
Kenny and Travis Senter of northeast Arkansas, were just two of the farmers in Deere’s CES display, answering questions and pulled back the curtain on production agriculture today.
“The biggest question is this machine that we're standing behind autonomous?” says Senter. “The other question is, on my Operations Center, all those all those machines that are on there, are they autonomous? So, I guess the big factor that they're looking at is autonomy.”
Deere and Company kicked off CES as the keynote speaker–a first for agriculture. And as Deere presented, the company pointed out farmers were sitting in the audience. The crowd gasped in response, proof that to CES attendees, the chance to meet real farmers was rare.
The Chance to Meet Farmers at CES
It was during those one-on-one conversations that Senter and Kennedy were able to connect with consumers, sharing with them–and even showing them–the ag technology already at work in fields today.
“Frankly, just having conversations with people that are in a totally different field than you but knowing that you're so connected to technology and how we're going to feed the world,” says Kennedy, when asked what’s been the most eye-opening aspect of her CES experience so far. “That’s really the mission of CES right now. It's all about driving that sustainability and providing technology to make sure that we can provide water and food and fuel to the world.
Kennedy is a second-generation farmer, who along with her dad and three sisters, created the brand 4Sisters, proving rice is part of this family’s legacy.
“Retail has been a whole new journey for us as a company, honestly, before 2019, we really didn't even have a website,” says Kennedy. “So, we were truly a commodity-based agricultural company. It has truly been a transformation from us.”
Connecting with Consumers
Kennedy says as CES sparked conversations with consumers, technology is helping discover what solutions really do make an environmental and production difference on their farm today.
“I think probably one of the hardest things that we've been facing recently is bringing that sustainability journey to life in a way that is meaningful to consumers, and doing it fast enough,” she says. “People want to see meaningful change, and I think that we're doing that, it just it takes time. So, having that kind of balance and providing the data to backup what we've been doing for so many years. I mean, really, the U.S. farmers the most sustainable in the world, we just had to tell that story better.”
Kennedy’s top concern for 2023 is climbing input costs, which is why she says any investment on their farm must produce a ROI. With higher costs, the rate at which they see that return is getting shorter, but it’s not changing their overall goal.
“It's about creating a path that we can all be on as a sustainable business,” she says. “And that we can all feel comfortable with the technology that we're using, and that we can make sure that we implement it in a meaningful way that brings value to us as a company.”
On the Cutting Edge of Adopting Technology
Senter considers himself on the cutting edge of adopting technology on his farm, as experiencing the latest technology is something Senter says he truly enjoys.
With 38 tractors, three combines, four sprayers and three cotton harvesters, orchestrating field works across their 20,000 acres, is a challenge, But Senter says through technology, that job is getting more efficient, something he was able to show attendees at CES.
“I remember early days of data, we always had flash drive and I just chased machines with a flash drive,” he says. “I felt like I was just working too hard to gather information and not actually using what I had to get it.”
A decade ago, Senter decided it was time to go all-in with how he was collecting and managing the data. That’s when he started processing his farm’s information into the cloud, while also investing in the systems and technology to propel his farm into the future.
“We kind of had a little bit here and a little bit there. Let's just put everything connected that way. It's all in one unit, we can see where everything's at. We know what everybody has going on. I don't have to keep detailed notes. I know everything's going into the cloud. I don't have to worry about chasing data that is working for me. I'm not working for it,” he says.
Adopting Automation
When Senter explores what’s next, he believes automation is the wave of the future.
“I think when you get into automation, which is what's coming, being able to drive machines, you're not necessarily going to lose labor, because you're going to need that labor to fix those pieces of equipment,” says Senter. “Their job may change from being an operator to actually maintaining and keeping that machine moving.
And while some automation is already at work in agriculture today, the velocity at which those changes are happening may be the biggest difference in the years ahead. Senter admits even his own views on autonomy have changed.
“I’ve had the opportunity to use that some of that autonomous machines, and I was very pessimistic at first. But it actually it did a phenomenal job. And so, me seeing it firsthand said, ‘Okay, we can do this, it can be done. Let's go forward with it,’” says Senter.
AEM's View on Agriculture's Role at CES
Association of Equipment Manufacturer (AEM) senior vice president Curt Blades says agriculture’s large footprint at CES elevated the image of ag last week.
“The biggest takeaway that I had from CES, representing the off road equipment industry was, hey, look at the really interesting technology that our members and the entire industry is working at to solve sustainability challenges for society,” says Blades.
As Blades attended CES, sat in on conversations and watched how equipment manufacturer’s showcased the technology in agriculture and construction today, and he says the message at CES was resounding: ag tech is a critical piece of meeting the growing demands.
“What's happened specifically at CES is that we have pointed to technology as part of that solution. In fact, we have some of the facts and figures and research to back that up that’s telling a story that it’s not about trying to sell more equipment, it's actually trying to solve societal problems,” says Blades.
The Rapid Change in Ag Tech
So, why is ag tech growing so rapidly? Blades says it’s multi-faceted. The changes are driven by not only agriculture being part of the solution, but the amount of investment entering the space, and just the sheer amount of data available today.
“The data is what's allowing good robotics to make more sense. It's allowing for better management decisions. It's allowing for better prescriptions,” he says. “You have to have the data in place to be able to take advantage of some of the technology that was unveiled, either in practice or in concept at CES.”
From artificial intelligence to robotics, CES showed the technology space is ever-changing, something Kennedy knows the future of their family farm hinges on the ability to evolve along with it.
“For my kids, I have a four- and eight-year-old, so I feel like if I can do something that's meaningful, bring value to them future generations to come preserve the land, that's what it's about,” she says.
The biggest surprise during CES was just how excited those consumers were to meet real farmers like Kennedy, a low tech, high touch opportunity for the industry to show off its positive impact on the world.
