Public Funding for Farm-Hand Ltd

S-SPICE (Satellite for Agri-Supply-chain Precision Improvements in Circulation Efficiency) addresses the two precarious ways the Covid-19 pandemic is affecting food processing and supply: 1) labour shortages in essential agricultural activities and 2) inefficiency in throughout the global food supply-chain, leading to post-harvest crop losses and food stock inequity. These two problems are being felt by all countries globally due to the intertwined nature of food industry. Particularly those countries with stringent lockdown conditions, reliance on food imports, have a high percentage of smallholder famers and an inability to effectively allocate government/private resources to alleviate transport blockages and bottlenecks in the supply-chain. The problem is compounded as small-medium holder farmers represent 90% (425 million) of all farms worldwide and provide 80% of total global food production and predominantly reside in developing countries with weak transport links, high level of farmer debt and with an agri-ecosystem that does not have data on the farmers or the resources to secure their livelihoods. Wheat and rice have gone up by 8% and 25% respectively, food processing factories are underutilised with many operating <50% capacity, fresh vegetables and fruit are left to decompose due to logistical failure whilst other areas are left food scarce and governments/stakeholders are spending excessive resources on non-data driven solutions and raising import/export barriers. These factors threatens global food security and food diversity. Coupling remote sensed data via satellites and Big Data allows us to gain better control of our food supply from farm-to-fork. Farm-Hand, a software and data analytics AgriTech company, will develop predictive capabilities regarding growth stage and harvest timings at an individual farm level to improve supply-chain efficiencies - now more important than ever. Farm-Hand innovates in opening data access across the agri-ecosystem and ensures the technology is applicable for both developed and developing countries. Open data allows for transparency and enlightened data-driven decision making by food processors, suppliers and retailers that operate locally and across borders. To address concerns raised by the Covid-19 pandemic, farm specific data must be remotely collected, processed to increase per unit labour productivity labour and improve insight and efficiency for the local/global supply chain. This project builds on Farm-Hand's foundations in remote sensing applications for agriculture and learnings from delivering agri-productivity enhancing low-cost solutions to the smallholder farmer. Farm-Hand will deliver a farmer-centric, farm-customised, software driven solution to agricultural stakeholders across the value chain improving decision-making, logistics and reducing waste.

no public description

REFRUIT (Resource Efficient Farming by Renewable Ugandan Irrigation Technology) addresses the barriers to irrigation uptake in Uganda and aims to deliver a technical solution and commercial strategy to improve productivity and livelihoods for the ~34M agrigulturally dependent population in Uganda. The project combines the easy-to-use and highly localised precision irrigation of Farm-Hand with the robust and low-cost solar pumps of Futurepump for field trials in the Gulu region of Uganda co-ordinated by Gulu Agricultural Development Company. Uganda utilises less than 0.5% of its irrigation potential. Simple irrigation has the potential to increase yields up to 5 times and precision irrigation further increases farm productivity by increasing yields and decreasing inputs. REFRUIT's objective is to adapt smart precision solar irrigation for the Ugandan context through a participatory process involving gathering baseline data and stakeholder workshops with farmers and aggregators; to demonstrate its performance through field trials; and to build a sustainable commercial case for its roll-out that utilises existing local structures. REFRUIT aim is to deliver a commercially viable and potentially disruptive renewable irrigation solution.