Miller Magazine Issue:114 June 2019

80 JUNE 2019 “If the drawback for VRF technology lies in the complexity of the maps and the interpretation of the many layers of data, then On the Go Protein analysis using an On Combine NIR Analyser provides a very simple means for farmers and their agronomists to capture 20-30% yield improvements. Protein plus yield tells the complete story as to the availability and uptake of nutrients including nitrogen, sulphur, potassium and phosphorus. The CropScan 3300H On Combine Analyser adds several layers of agronomic data that has been missing from the Precision Agriculture puzzle.” The next major tool for Precision Agriculture: Real-time protein monitoring Phillip Clancy CEO Next Instruments Sydney, Australia Cereal and oil seed crops including wheat, barley, rice, corn, canola and soybeans make up more than 80% of the world’s grain production, i.e., 2513 million metric tonnes in 2017. It has been forecast that the world will need to increase the production of grains and oilseeds by 30% by 2050 in order to feed the 9 billion people that will inhabit the pla- net. However there is not an additional amount of arable land to meet this demand. As such farmers, agronomists, ag scientists and governments are faced with the challenge of producing 30% more through better technology. A major tool available to the agriculture eco system to achieve this task is Precision Agriculture. The US Dept of Agriculture defines of Precision Agriculture as: “ a management system that is information and te- chnology based, is site specific and uses one or more