Regular attendees to the world’s biggest agricultural machinery shows will be familiar with the excitement and enthusiasm that infuses such events.
While new tractor models receive their first public showing, implausibly shiny implements take centre-stage, and unveiled new features are variously labelled ‘cutting edge’ or ‘state of the art’, visitors are wooed and wowed at every turn to impress upon them the latest productivity or efficiency gain that a particular model promises to deliver.
Yet the farm machinery of tomorrow will need to do more than look good under the show spotlights. The world is worried about its future food security; productivity and efficiency are important, but not at any cost. Farms need to be profitable but must become more sustainable. We have a growing world population, and many are still fighting poverty and hunger. Climate change is happening, with agriculture considered to be responsible for one-fifth of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions1.
Agriculture is in crisis, it seems. So can machines – in their design and use – help the industry adapt to the more environmentally sustainable future that it needs? Reduced carbon emissions, better nitrogen and water use efficiencies, precision crop protection products, food production and biodiversity co-existing? Indeed, can agricultural activities make more efficient use of machines themselves?
Fast-forward a few years, to an agricultural show of the future, and we might expect to see four main trends emerge in the machinery sector, according to the UN’s Food and Agricultural Organization. It believes farm machinery will have to be ‘intelligent, lean, precise and efficient’2, if it’s to minimise its effect on soil, water, landscape and biodiversity. Behind the shiny surfaces, we’ll have something of real substance: sustainability.
One of the agricultural activities with the most significant effect on the environment is our management of soil. While farmers originally saw soil operations as a valuable problem-solver – weed control, incorporation of organic matter, seedbed preparation – we know now that repeated tillage brings problems of its own, including damage to the microbiome, structural disruption and even loss of soil through surface run-off and erosion.
Reducing or eliminating soil tillage has become a priority for many farmers. Machinery manufacturers are responding with a new generation of equipment that doesn’t rely on inversion. Minimum tillage and direct drilling are now commonplace on farms around the world.
Such practices have knock-on effects that contribute to overall goals for sustainability and reduced environmental impact. For example, when ploughing practices are abandoned, farmers no longer have a requirement for high-powered tractors as smaller, leaner models can operate the lighter machinery.
In turn, this hastens the development of new power technologies, whether more efficient internal combustion engine (ICE) models – such as the Perkins® Syncro engine platform – or alternative fuels such as LNG. Reducing a tractor’s average power demand also lowers some of the barriers to electric power development: current power/duration equations demand such large and heavy batteries that the prospect becomes undeliverable.
Switching to minimum tillage in crop production can also help reduce farmers’ reliance on crop protection products. Essential to maintain high yields and productivity per hectare, the chemical management of weeds, diseases and pests can nevertheless have a negative environmental effect. The ongoing debate between scientists, policymakers, farmers and consumers concerning possible links between the use of neonicotinoids and a decline in bee populations is a visible example.
The EU has announced plans to cut pesticide use by 50 percent before 20303, although there is pressure to increase that goal to 80 percent. Scientific advances have already cut pesticide use by 97 percent since the 1960s, thanks to improved chemistry. But here ‘intelligent’ machines can play a crucial role.
Precision spraying, applying products only to the target weeds or diseased plants, can effect a sizeable reduction in pesticide use without compromising efficiency, food security or safety. And as another article in Powernews explains, precision spraying is now increasingly becoming the domain of agricultural drones, offering intelligence, precision and efficiency all-in-one.
One of the most interesting feature areas at our future agricultural show might be the ‘Driverless and Autonomous’ exhibition hall. Autonomous, or even semi-autonomous vehicles can improve sustainability in several ways. First, with autonomous farm vehicles comes greater accuracy. Even the most experienced tractor driver comes to rely on ‘eye’ and ‘feel’ for many operations, metrics that are often not consistent for one driver, let alone several.
‘Smart’ vehicles use sensors, field maps and machine-learning to deliver entirely repeatable actions, positioning tyres, spreaders, spray booms and seed drills to far greater levels of accuracy. Spray and drilling overlaps become a thing of the past, hugely increasing resource-use efficiency, while in-field obstacles such as pylons and waterways can be avoided accurately and safely.
Another fascinating development arising from autonomous machines is the idea of ‘Farming as a Service’. Taking advantage of recent developments in artificial intelligence, cloud computing and robotics, FaaS links robots and an operating system. Every plant within the field is then mapped and digitised before analysis against a database of information and advice. The process results in plant-by-plant instructions about every aspect of crop care – nutrition, weed control, disease suppression, harvesting – which the robots follow.
The system uses a permanently situated on-farm robot to keep the in-field monitoring up to date, while specific tasks such as feeding, weeding and spraying are carried out on-demand, by a robot that knows when it’s needed in each field. The system could deliver very high levels of crop care and production, without farmers needing to invest time and capital in operations, fuel and machinery, while staying safe in the knowledge that the robots are meeting all requirements for good practice in management of soils, water and landscapes.
What’s clear from these examples is that sustainable agriculture doesn’t have to mean lower yields, reduced efficiency or lost profitability. But it does mean a commitment from machinery manufacturers to invest R&D budgets in designing and producing machines that can meet society’s demand for sustainable agricultural practices.
Perhaps you’ll see your next visit to an agricultural machinery show through new eyes.
Share this story and get involved in the conversation on social media #Powernews
Powernews caught up with Sylvia to learn more about her responsibilities, motivations, and leadership journey.
Read moreHow our Customer Solutions and Engineering teams are actively helping customers reduce fuel consumption.
Read moreMore than 280,000 visitors from across the world attended this year’s four-day long Bauma China exhibition in Shanghai.
Read moreThe state’s farmers grow more than 400 commodity crops, 19 of them unique to the Golden State.
Read moreAvailable in the second half of 2025, the 2600 Series offers excellent load acceptance, fuel efficiency and versatility.
Read moreAdrian Bell dives into the history of Californian agriculture.
Read moreThe importance of thermal fluids simulation.
Read moreHow ‘noise chambers’ help Perkins build quieter engines.
Read moreThe global voice for agricultural equipment manufacturers.
Read moreMeet our Vice President of facility operations.
Read moreThe customer benefits achieved through Perkins’ new connectivity solutions.
Read moreThe new Perkins global marketing and channel development director.
Read moreThings are different when it’s very, very cold.
Read moreEngineering manager Graham Hill explains the importance of structural simulation when designing a new engine.
Read moreThe platform will cover two key power nodes.
Read moreInterview with Susterre CEO Michael Cully on the latest no-till soil solutions.
Read moreA compact 12 cylinder powerhouse.
Read moreFor 60 years Lindner has chosen Perkins engines to power its machines.
Read morePerkins kicks off Project Coeus to demonstrate leading-edge hydrogen hybrid power solutions.
Read moreDependable electric power generation drives sales of Perkins® 4000 Series in India.
Read morePerkins launches the next generation 2600 Series engine.
Read moreAdding to the product range with an 18-litre engine.
Read moreFind out how this vast country approaches agriculture and food production.
Read moreBy re-examining, reimagining, and re-engineering what is expected.
Read moreA clear demonstration of what's possible when a passion for innovation meets a commitment to excellence.
Read moreWith local resources and global support.
Read moreAdvance power solutions from Perkins.
Read morePart three of our series with Dave Robinson.
Read moreJaz Gill talks Perkins new brand strategy.
Read moreThe Perkins® 5000 Series engines generating reliable power for critical applications.
Read moreRental expert Dave Stollery gives his view on the opportunities around rolling out EU Stage V equipment.
Read moreIf you want to get back to engineering, this programme can be the key to making it happen.
Read moreConstantly innovating to meet the changing electric power marketplace.
Read moreAn appropriate environmental, social and governance (ESG) proposition really matters.
Read moreManufacturing industrial engines at our Curitiba facility since 2003.
Read morePerkins Aurangabad celebrates the production of its 10,000th 4000 Series engine.
Read moreThe heart of sustainable power.
Read moreOffering a complete solution for off-highway engines in Latin America.
Read moreWacker Neuson’s new EW100 10-ton mobile excavator
Read moreFifty years of support for the written word in agriculture.
Read morePerkins rental industry commitment continues to grow.
Read moreSupporting the STEM development of future generations.
Learn MoreRenewable and low carbon intensity fuels in Perkins engines.
Read morePart 2 of our three part interview series with Perkins’ Dave Robinson.
Read moreThe launch of the complete range of 5000 Series full authority electronic engines.
Read morePerkins is actively supporting the rental industry's transition to the latest EU Stage V technologies.
Read morePowered by the compact and powerful Perkins® 904 Series.
Read morePerkins EAME business development director Dave Robinson writes on 'power on the farm'.
Read moreThe Perkins Rental Support Programme has already been adopted in some form by virtually every significant rental business in the world.
Read moreDid you know that Türkiye is the world’s fourth-biggest tractor market? Take a closer look – from an agricultural perspective – at this fascinating country.
Read moreThe Perkins® 904 Series family of Industrial Open Power Units provide customers with ‘plug-and-play’ engines that often can be fitted to a broad range of equipment.
Read moreThe Curitiba plant has delivered more than 300,000 engines since 2003 including engines meeting MAR-1 emission standards.
Read moreWhy the popularity of telehandlers is reaching new heights.
Read moreWhy data has become a priceless commodity in modern construction.
Read moreTalk of reaching ‘net zero’ is frequently discussed, but what does net zero look like for agriculture?
Read moreWhy the rental industry is so well placed to support sustainability goals.
Read moreWould you buy a diesel-powered mobile phone?
Read moreDiscover more about the benefits of moving to Stage V power.
Read moreWho will be the farmer of tomorrow and what skills will they have?
Read moreLow noise, vibration and harshness is important to both OEMs and the end user.
Read moreInsatiable demand for data in South Africa is driving a huge growth in data centres.
Read moreWhat does urban construction look like over the next decade?
Read moreRevolution through evolution.
Read morePutting people into plant.
Read moreThe electric charge: how access to reliable power is fuelling prosperity across the globe.
Read moreCollaboration: in search of excellence.
Read moreHow can manufacturing businesses move stock like clockwork?
Read moreWhat are the key benefits of downsizing engine capacity in the materials handling.
Read moreThe future of diesel-driven power generation keeps getting brighter.
Read moreImportant information and tips to make the best decision for your next job.
Read more