Drones to accelerate smart farming
A visitor checks one of XAG's latest drones.
Drones used by farmers have huge global potential due to food safety concerns and the demand for quality produce, agriculture drone vendor XAG said on Monday.
XAG's drones are currently used in 38 countries and cover 310 million mu (206,667 square kilometers), accounting for 0.3 percent of the world's agriculture acreage.
This means there is a lot of space in the market for new drone applications to accelerate digital farming and empower the next generation of farmers around the world, Peng Bin, founder and CEO of XAG, said at the company’s annual tech conference in Guangzhou.
By September 20, more than 42,000 XAG agriculture drones were in operation by 56,000 trained flyers, the company said.
The company launched its latest XAG XP2020 model on Monday, with new features like precision spraying, enhanced battery and positioning, obstacle avoidance, night operation and terrain tracing.
China's agriculture development has depended on integration with digital technologies, such as artificial intelligence, 5G and smart manufacturing, said Zhang Shixian, a professor with the Chinese Academy of School Sciences. The industry and integration needs firms such as XAG, Zhang said.
XAG is establishing a global footprint.
XAG and Bayer are cooperating on digital farming in Japan.
Speakers from Japan, New Zealand, South Korea shared their experiences of using XAG drones on farms and golf courses at the conference.
