PODCAST: Tech Competition for Farm Software
Courtney Kinger
AgriNovus Indiana, the Indiana Corn Marketing Council, and the Indiana Soybean Alliance have launched a $25,000 competition to bring the state’s agricultural industry together with Indiana’s tech sector to find solutions for farm management software issues.
The Producer-Led Innovation Challenge was created so software developers and farmers can work together to make it faster, easier and more efficient to manage the digital demands of modern farming operations.
“You never know what what’s gonna be thrown your way every morning when you get up to go farm,” said Paul Hodgen, a corn and soybean grower from Putnam County. “There’s definitely still a lot of challenges out there which is why I’m excited about this this program.”
Well beyond seed and soil, modern farm operations rely heavily on data, ranging from accounting to complex production information.
“This is a unique opportunity to bring together innovators and producers with the goal of improving farm income through software,” said Courtney Kingery, chief executive officer of Indiana Corn Marketing Council and Indiana Soybean Alliance.
CLICK HERE to learn about the competition.
Hogden and Kingery are guests on this week’s episode of the Ag+Bio+Science podcast, presented by AgriNovus Indiana, where they discussed the economic uncertainty plaguing Hoosier farmers.
“The ag economy here in Indiana is really entering a new chapter of growth and innovation coming out of the global pandemic. We need a more resilient food supply chain and new approaches to really fuel on farm profitability,” said Kingery.
She said the farm and ag economy are being faced with really extended periods of economic pressure. Kingery said there’s pressure from weak commodity prices and from constricted demand, due in part to trade disputes.
Another challenge is increasing input costs.
“And so, both of those are coming together to put pressure on farm profitability,” said Kingery.
Hodgen, who has a PhD in soil fertility, returned to the family farm in 2012, after having worked for Monsanto (now Bayer) for several years.
Despite the economic challenges, Hodgen believes it’s an exciting time to be in agriculture and agbiosciences.
“It’s going to be a very fun to be involved in Indiana agriculture the next ten years with all the technology that’s currently available on the farm and what’s in the pipeline right now,” said Hodgen. “The technology revolution on the farm, whether it’s software, hardware, bio sciences, we haven’t seen anything yet. The ability for us to innovate is increasing exponentially.”
Each week, host Gerry Dick conducts conversations with leaders, innovators, and entrepreneurs in Indiana’s agbioscience sector, discussing the confluence of food, agriculture, science and technology.
The full podcast will be available Monday morning. Click here for more information on how you can listen.