Building a Smarter Food System
Ensuring global food security is not easy and a challenge that is being worked on by many businesses, governments, and NGO’s around the world. For years, Bill Gates has been saying that big data will change the way we farm and produce food… for the better. Big data consists of capturing and sharing quality metrics, such as market data or nutritional statistics.
As world population continues to grow and urbanize, food consumption patterns are changing all over the globe. The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) expects demand for food to increase 30% by 2025 – that’s just 10 years away. To meet this growing demand, the global food system will need to improve efficiency, become more responsive to consumer expectations, increase profits and become more resilient to swings in commodity prices and other economic shocks.
Companies have been working hard to develop precision technologies to help the food chain produce more food on the same amount of land. Technologies that are being developed in farming, processing and logistics are already starting to change food systems. For example:
- Drones monitor livestock, crops and measure pasture and grass growth. This technology is being further developed to become more reliable and adapted for use across the globe.
- Retailers capture and use data to track purchases and monitor perishable goods to gain insight on purchasing habits.
- Agri-tech start-ups are developing tools to help farmers cut costs and increase yields, through weather information, analytics, soil monitoring, and price information.
- Poultry producers can improve welfare and profitability by monitoring each stage of the production cycle.
- Plant and soil sensors coupled with GPS provide farmers real time data to optimize the delivery of water and fertilizers.
So what can we do with all of this data? As a processor it is important to work with businesses that understand new technology and help you apply it to your operation. It is also crucial to work with companies that are focused on innovation and have a track record of working with their customers after the sale.
This is why we have developed the recently-introduced Insta-Pro Portable Ingredient Analyzer (PIA) NIR machine – specifically calibrated for use in soy processing plants with Insta-Pro equipment. The Insta-Pro PIA allows nearly real-time analysis of data on moisture, protein, oil, and fiber in samples of whole soybeans, dry extruded whole soybeans (extruded full-fat), and ExPress® (extruded/expelled) soy meal. Using this tool, an Insta-Pro soy processor will now be able to optimize performance, by maximizing oil extraction efficiency and meal nutrient consistency with the help of better data.
Contact your local sales director to learn more about how Insta-Pro PIA can help your facility become more profitable.
