Staying ahead of the technology curve means strengthening your competitive advantage. That is why we give you data-driven innovation insights into the agriculture sector. This time, you get to discover 5 hand-picked AgriTech startups developing soil monitoring solutions.
Out of 324, the Global Startup Heat Map highlights 5 Top AgriTech Startups developing Soil Monitoring Solutions
The insights of this data-driven analysis are derived from the Big Data & Artificial Intelligence-powered StartUs Insights Discovery Platform, covering 2 093 000+ startups & scaleups globally. The platform gives you an exhaustive overview of emerging technologies & relevant startups within a specific field in just a few clicks.
The Global Startup Heat Map below reveals the distribution of the 324 exemplary startups & scaleups we analyzed for this research. Further, it highlights 5 AgriTech startups that we hand-picked based on criteria such as founding year, location, funding raised, and more. You get to explore the solutions of these 5 startups & scaleups in this report. For insights on the other 319 soil monitoring solutions, get in touch.
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Agri-EPI Centre develops Soil Emission Sensors
Farms are already a large contributor to global greenhouse gases (GHGs) and the emissions continue to rise as they expand operations. To reduce their carbon footprint, farms are utilizing drones, satellite imaging, and precision agriculture. However, one of the leading sources of carbon dioxide is the soil on which crops are grown. To curb this, startups are creating sensors that quantify and manage carbon soil emissions.
Australian startup Agri-EPI Centre manufactures sensors that monitor carbon from soil and crops at different times of day, month, season, and year. The sensor differentiates variations in respiration (positive flux) and sequestration (negative flux) of carbon from soil emission periodically. This allows farmers to actively monitor and manage or reduce their carbon emissions and receive rewards from governments for doing so.
Teralytic manufactures Soil Quality Monitoring Probes
Plants are affected by a large number of above and below-ground factors such as pathogens, parasites, root feeders, nutrient imbalance, temperature, and saturation, among others. Due to the lack of quantified data on soil conditions, farmers are unable to accurately predict problems ahead of time. As a result, they are only able to make reactive decisions regarding crop damage. Due to this, startups are developing soil probes that collect a range of data, allowing farmers to plan and manage their soil quality.
US-based startup Teralytic develops wireless nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (NPK) sensors for farm soil quality monitoring. Their probes contain 26 sensors to report soil moisture, salinity, and NPK at three different depths along with aeration, respiration, air temperature, light, and humidity. The data from the probe enables farm owners and operators to identify problem areas, compare soil between zones, and match fertilizer supply with demand, thereby saving costs and increasing yield.
Suyabakan develops Soil Moisture Sensors
The moisture level in soil plays a vital role in plant cell division and transportation of nutrients through the plant. Many farms experience problems such as overexploitation and overuse of surface water, waterlogging, and runoffs. The root of such problems lies in the lack of means to understand the optimal or precise level of irrigation required for crops. This is why startups are offering sensors that enable farmers to manage and control irrigation practices.
Suyabakan is a Turkish startup that offers sensors for real-time monitoring of soil moisture. The data collection station collects measurements sent by the sensor bars within a 1 km radius coverage area and transmits them to the data center. The sensor operates without maintenance for at least one year by consuming very little energy from the single battery, while taking measurements every hour. Apart from reducing water use in farms, the sensor also enables farmers to map soil characteristics and plant types which facilitate informed decisions.
Mist Agricultural Laboratory (MISTAL) provides Soil Quality Analytics
The farming industry is increasingly adopting smart technologies and precision agriculture practices to increase yields while reducing costs. Although these tools and technologies offer many benefits, high initial or recurring costs prevent many small- and medium-scale farms from accessing these technologies. To overcome this, startups are providing services in soil quality analysis to farms that are unable to do it themselves.
MISTAL is a Namibian startup that provides agricultural analysis of soil, manure, and plant sampling for its clients. The soil analysis services offered by the startup include soil texture and nutrient analysis, agricultural crop and fertilizer recommendations, and manure analysis, among others. This allows farms and farmers to analyze their soil quality, improve crop yields, and adopt sustainable water harvesting techniques without high upfront costs.
FarmLab facilitates Soil Mapping
Soil mapping assists in the identification of soil types across a landscape, which is useful to make farm-level decisions. A more important application of soil mapping is to determine the suitability of a soil for particular crop types or the drainage capabilities of the soil. Most farms utilize soil testing services that provide insights but do not have any means of combining multiple reports or soil tests to generate comprehensive soil maps. To this end, startups are creating solutions that input data directly from labs into soil mapping software.
Australian startup FarmLab develops agronomy and project management software. Their solution links management practices to changes in soil fertility by building maps using normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), elevation layers, or gamma layers. This also supports agronomic recommendations and interpretation. Moreover, the software takes data from soil samples tested in labs and maps them automatically to the farm. These benefits farmers, farm operators, and agronomists in communicating with clients, managing soil testing, and sharing recommendations.
Discover more AgriTech Startups
AgriTech startups such as the examples highlighted in this report focus on irrigation management, precision farming, as well as soil management. While all of these technologies play a major role in advancing the agricultural industry, they only represent the tip of the iceberg. To explore more agricultural technologies, simply get in touch to let us look into your areas of interest. For a more general overview, you can download our free AgriTech Innovation Report to save your time and improve strategic decision-making.
