INTHEBLACK May 2026 - Magazine - Page 21
Smart farming uses digital
technology to improve farm
viability, sustainability and
resilience.
The shift to proactive,
data-driven decision-making
is driving demand for new
skills and technology.
Success will come when
technology costs and ESG
pressures are balanced with
financial sustainability.
The smart
agriculture
revolution
LISTEN
to this story
Highly sensitive to the effects of climate risk, cost pressure and
technological possibility, agriculture is going through a “smart revolution”
that will influence production, financing, governance and sustainability.
Words Chris Sheedy
FARMING, ONCE CONSIDERED
a largely manual process, is undergoing
transformation. With the addition of drones
and robotics; AI-fuelled crop, water and soil
monitoring software; sensors on machines
and much more, agriculture has entered
a phase of rapid digitalisation.
However, beneath the dashboards and
data lies a story that is as human as it is
technological. Smart farming and
agriculture is about viability and resilience,
evolution and change, and the ability for
stakeholders — including consumers — to
engage more deeply in a sector they might
know little about.
For farmers, professionals in adjacent
industries and consumers, the shift represents
both challenge and opportunity. But first,
what exactly is smart farming?
PRACTICAL SOLUTIONS
Dr Anthony Kachenko, general manager,
production and sustainability research and
development at horticulture research group
Hort Innovation, describes smart farming
simply as “practical solutions that can address
intheblack.cpaaustralia.com.au 21
