AgriTech Market Overview And Trends For 2024-2030

Which Trends Are The Most Prominent For Farmers And Agribusinesses In 2024-2030?

There is a big difference between the higher growth in population and the subsequent arable land increase. As humanity, we need to think about raising the number of arable land proportionally, which is not sustainable in the long run, or choose another path. Agtech offers ways to help maximize the use of the land at hand. That is why we will see the growth of the global digital agriculture market in the next several years. The prediction is for a 9.17% year-over-year growth. It is worth noting that technology-driven farming practices will be right at the center of this vortex due to a major growing interest in software solutions and services.

Another prominent trend is the growing interest in sustainable agriculture. As new generations of farmers emerge, their culture revolves around sensitive relationships with nature. As humans, we are evolving from a consumption-only mindset to one that includes environmental considerations. These new farmers require sustainable practices that prioritize natural methods of taking care of the soil and crops. The need for sustainable farming practices is driving a simultaneous growth in automation and control systems, with a YoY growth rate of 10.55%.

Automation and control systems lead us to a subject near and dear to our hearts: satellite monitoring and aerial data, which are becoming increasingly prevalent in sustainable agriculture. They aid in crop monitoring, field mapping, and yield prediction, among other things. However, due to the high-cost technologies that prevail in the market, farmers might wait to adopt innovative tech. This creates an opportunity for smaller businesses to offer accessible digital solutions for more intensive and effective farming practices.

Another notable trend is the advancement of commercial satellite technology and its availability to the average user. Twenty years ago, no one even thought that satellites could be used to monitor agriculture. Right now, we have access to commercial satellites, remote sensing tech, and IoT systems, which only became possible about a decade ago. This new hardware pushes advancement in agriculture. We have new sensors on the fields that monitor everything from water content to temperature. We have constellations like the ones Planet is launching to allow receiving the information we never had at the beginning of this millennium.

The space industry has become more commercialized, and this trend will continue to grow. Vendors of remote sensing data are encouraging users to come up with more solutions for using this data, creating a new market. As a result, farmers now have a growing selection of satellite data and service providers to choose from.

Another prominent trend is the growth of environmental, social, and governance (ESG)-related practices. For that, appropriate regulations and programs are needed. Sustainable and transparent farming demand is causing increasing government funding and supportive regulatory policies, especially in Europe. However, the Asia-Pacific region, particularly China and India, is keeping up with adopting smart farming technologies with a 13.6% YoY growth rate, contributing to the global market’s expansion.

The last trend worth mentioning is the growing percentage of female input suppliers, now at 55%. This means that agriculture and agritech are becoming more open to diversity.

Does Geography Play A Role In Trend-Setting? Are There Any Specific Countries That You’d Target More Than Others?

Geography definitely plays a role in trend-setting, as countries with greater prospects for developing innovations set the trends that the world gladly follows. The US and the UK have the most significant market shares now, but that might not be the case in the observable future. In 2023, North American market share was expected to grow at a 6.5% CAGR from 39.6%, but it is projected to drop to 31.0% by the decade’s end. The European Union and the UK have a different fate, as their market share will increase to 23.4% by 2030, growing at a 10.6% CAGR.

There might also be a market shift connected to climate change. For instance, some untenable lands might become arable and vice versa. Those changes are hard to predict, and so countries and regions that can adapt faster will likely gain more market share.

Developing countries have more potential to leverage disruptive trends. Farmers there have to work on their struggles and development by themselves, not relying on any outside help. Operating with limited resources, their technological development tends to be more rapid and disruptive to the market. As a result, their market share is expected to grow faster than ever before. For instance, the Asia-Pacific region, driven by the development of China and India, is expected to grow at 13.6% CAGR, while Latin America will experience growth of 10.2%, and the Middle East and Africa will achieve a 17.6% CAGR from 2023 to 2030.

China is a big market player that develops its space technologies along with sattech and agtech. It wants to dominate space and become a force other spacefaring nations should account with by 2050. It has more than 600 active satellites in Earth’s orbit today ^{(2023, July 19). China’s Space seed breeding makes breakthrough, contributing to agricultural technology and food security. Global Times.}. The country has better coverage, connections, and more points of contact for satellite imagery than other countries. Moreover, Chinese seed studies and experiments on the Tiangong space station have brought marvelous results to the world. The seeds gestate in space, allowing them to be bigger and have different variants of breeds ^{(2024, March 7). China’s satellites are improving rapidly. Its army will benefit. The Economist.}. The size difference between ground-grown and space-grown crops is drastic, providing China with the potential to feed more people, which is one of the goals in the background of a constantly growing population.

We also expect the growth of the Ukrainian market share in Eastern Europe and worldwide agriculture. After the victory in the war, Ukraine will reconstruct its destroyed ecosystems, including cities and agriculture. In order to rebuild everything fast, there will be a requirement to use new and disruptive technology, and so we expect Ukraine to step over the decades of development and innovation, implement the most modern agtech, and become a market leader. Despite the war now, our country remains a bread basket of Europe and the world, so we need to make that leap into the future. EOS Data Analytics will be there to support Ukrainian ag and agtech markets every step of the way, like providing free access to EOSDA Crop Monitoring to Ukrainian farmers in 2024.

Is There Anything Specific In Farm Management That Might Interest Our Clients In 2024-2025?

There are a couple of interesting trends I have recently noticed that might also be exciting for our clients to know. One of them is digital twins. The concept is that the software creates a digital model or a virtual representation of an actual physical object, be it a product, system, or process. Digital twins have been widely used in various industries, and now, the concept has migrated to agriculture. Digital twins will allow farmers to create a digital copy of their fields and model the future influence of diverse parameters, from climate change to irrigation methods solutions or soil health management.

Other trends include broader use of generative AI and cloud solutions for data management on the tech side, as well as environmental protection innovations and regenerative agriculture on the agri side. Generative AI, or Gen AI, is now utilized to generate or analyze agricultural data and produce insights. Data gathered and generated by AI requires storage space, so, naturally, cloud solutions can provide that space. As for the agri side, environmental protection innovations play a pivotal role in ensuring farming is done sustainably and without ecosystem disruptions. As a result of those innovations, regenerative farming is born, allowing for soil regeneration through diverse agri practices.

Another interesting trend is digital incentives for regenerative practices. There are several companies that encourage farmers and agribusinesses to become more sustainable by tokenizing their actions. Agriplayers that restore barren lands or green biomass and work on soil renewal can receive certain bonuses or tokens that can then be converted into digital currency. The positive regeneration farming practices require accurate third-party monitoring and validation of progress, and EOSDA can serve as a helping hand and act as a mediator between those companies and agribusinesses, as we provide satellite imagery analytics.

How Significant Is The Expected Growth In The Agritech Market, And What Does It Imply For The Future Of Agriculture?

At this point, we have already experienced a decent level of technology development. For instance, EOSDA has a number of custom solutions that reflect client requests for precision agriculture. One might think it is enough to cover all the farmers’ needs on the path to a sustainable world.

However, many different tools that were developed can deal with the damage currently done by climate change and human activity. We are keeping up with the pace and are able to respond rather than prevent. It is clearly not enough to tackle emerging global problems, such as world hunger, as a result of the climate crisis. We, as agtech professionals, need to think ahead and deal with problems before they appear.

More robotization and automatization to add value to sustainable practices are expected, along with a decrease in pesticide use. Those two are connected, as automatization and robotics allow for better pesticide application precision. EOSDA helps its clients with that accurate application as well, fuelling the machines with the required location data.

Due to climate change, vertical farms in the greenhouses and enclosed farms will definitely become an emerging trend. The controlled environment of the greenhouse allows for certain conditions that can otherwise be compromised in an open field. Urban vertical farms that exist within the cities can become sustainable food sources for the populations and help tackle the challenge of arable lands discussed before. Vertical farms rely on aeroponics and hydroponics for sustaining, and that is where the tech progress will move gradually.

With all of those tech advancements, EOSDA expects the agtech industry to rise. The global agriculture market is estimated to have a 9.17% compound annual growth rate from 2022 to 2030. This is significant growth called for as a response to the severe threat to yields from climate change. At the same time, digital agriculture is developing globally at an even bigger rate, with a projected CAGR of 10.31% up to 2030.

Are There Any Blockers For Further Digital Agriculture Development, And What Can EOSDA Do To Avoid Them?

Unfortunately, farmers do not always embrace innovations swiftly. Many of them are multi-generational professionals who keep their conventional farming practices close to their hearts. However, as they face climate challenges, such as rising temperatures, exhausted soils, and decreasing yields, they seek new ways to continue supporting the world with their crops. Sometimes, their knowledge of available innovations might be limited, as they simply don’t know where to start.

Here is where EOSDA can give a hand. We try our best to showcase our products to potential clients. That is why we constantly participate in various events, one of the latest being a very successful ESA SYMPOSIUM organized by the European Space Agency, where EOS Data Analytics specialists presented our recent study results. We also organize regular webinars on hot agri topics that might interest our clients, like a recent presentation and Q&A session on AI and ML algorithms we developed for soil carbon sequestration modeling. Those initiatives allow us to help our current and prospective clients stay on the crest of the wave of relevant trends in precision farming.

Another path that we choose and that might work for other companies is cross-sales. We seek out various players in other markets and offer our services to them so that they can provide them to the agribusinesses and farmers later. For instance, EOSDA had cases of partnering with Asian and African telecom providers before. Such providers then resell our solutions to their end users, allowing them to check their field analytics, for instance. Those partners use our products and services as a bonus to become noticeable in their respective markets, and we expand our market coverage through those deals.

Agribanks are another example of cross-sales, as financial institutions, banks, and insurance companies need the tools to check the farmers’ claims or funding requests. For that, they can use our services. EOSDA already entered the Australian, New Zealand, and Middle Eastern agribusiness markets to provide agriculture monitoring and risk management amenities. Some of those companies use our White Label solution to give their clients access to remote field monitoring. This helps raise awareness about the sattech possibilities and elevate the level of trust among our end users.

What Do Farmers Think About Technological Advancements?

Over the years, new technologies have allowed farmers to adapt their approaches to agriculture to increase yields. Thus, they might be open to new agritech solutions and find them quite helpful. One of the trends that we have noticed lately is the idea of combining new tech with conventional practices. There is a thin line between using traditional hardware within conventional farming practices and advancing them with innovative tools. Sometimes, there is one single step, like in the irrigation systems that utilize GPS technology to provide more precise watering ^{Landscaping & Irrigation GPS Tracking. GPS Technologies.}. With that, there are tools that allow the detection of water loss using L-band radar satellites. Companies like ASTERRA actively use the ALOS-2 SAR satellite to detect and monitor irrigation leaks. Thus, it is much easier to go from tradition to innovation, intertwining them in the process.

Other times, the process might be longer, e.g., with remote monitoring solutions that require installation, adaptation, and substantial staff education. In any case, if there is a will, there is a way of combining conventional practices and innovative tools. More so, this combination can help with the smoother transition to sustainable and precise farming.

Traditional agriculture can survive all of those changes in the long run with the rise of agritech, but only by becoming more efficient in incorporating space technology and other tech advancements. EOSDA is on its path to helping farmers and agribusinesses develop and enhance their centuries-old practices. Other innovative companies work on changing the tools and creating stronger crop types to withstand changing environmental conditions. It is important to note that innovative and conventional agricultural professionals need to work together to tackle climate change and ensure we not only survive but thrive as a species.

What Trends Would You Consider Disruptive For The AgriTech Market?

I can identify two key segments that might be considered disruptive. One is pretty evident in terms of growth, and that is the farm management systems segment. As more and more farmers want as much control as possible over their crops, automation and control components of agritech hardware development become more popular. Thus, farm management systems market share is projected to grow at a 16.97% CAGR.

Another segment that complements this one but might be less evident is satellite monitoring, which is predicted to grow at a 6.82% CAGR by the end of this decade. Sensing and monitoring devices ensure said automation, and remote sensing with the help of satellite technology is increasingly becoming an emerging trend.

Robotics, as I mentioned previously, is an emerging trend in agriculture in terms of hardware. However, combined with automation and satellite tech, this trend will skyrocket and disrupt the agritech market. This combo allows for fewer human-made mistakes, more precision and scalability, and 24/7 operations. Throw IoT in there, and you can have a software-hardware cocktail of turbulent technologies that will change the agricultural landscape forever.

Which Segments Are In The Most Need Of AgriTech Solutions?

Each segment requires a different solution or application in terms of agricultural technology. For instance, large-scale crop producers and food and beverage manufacturers require crop monitoring and yield prediction, as they heavily rely on harvest. Field mapping and weather tracking and forecasting are also relevant to these user segments, as they need to compile their field locations database and know which weather conditions are out there so they can plan field work more precisely. Input suppliers, on the other hand, are interested in irrigation and soil and fertilizer applications for their work, as they need to know how their clients work in the field to give sustainable recommendations.

Those applications and solution categories are also helpful for other user segments, like consulting, government agencies, agri-focused banks, and digital agriculture services (or telecom). As these segment users have projects or entire businesses built around agriculture, they require innovative solutions to stay ahead of the market and make long-lasting decisions.

Another not-so-obvious segment is the logistics of foods, seeds, inputs, etc. As we live in a globalized world, everything that is produced must be delivered somewhere. Sattech helps with that immensely, as it allows communication within the fleets, tracking shipments, and optimizing routes. Sattech analytics even allow predicting consumptions. That is why I think that satellite tech and analytics will play an important role in distributing agricultural produce more effectively and predicting where it is needed most, including data about flooding, droughts, hunger possibilities, etc.

Do You Have Any Advice For Agribusinesses That Struggle With Current Practices And Want To Dive Into AgTech?

The first piece of advice would be to read our report. It provides the most recent and in-depth analysis of the agri and agritech markets and offers insights into future trends.

The next step is to determine which practices can be adopted immediately and which can wait. Instead of deep-diving into everything at once, agribusinesses should create a strategy for a gradual tech shift. Be the tech to adopt as big as satellite observation or as small as automatic irrigation of a one-hectare field, they can seek advice from their colleagues who have already gone on a similar path and survived all the nitty-gritty steps. Peer advice is usually the most trusted source of information.

They should also check the governmental programs available in their region/country. Governments often support agribusinesses that aim for sustainability ^{Barbosa, M. W. (2024). Government Support Mechanisms for Sustainable Agriculture: A Systematic Literature. Sustainability, 16(5), 2185. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16052185.}. Diverse government support programs allow businesses to grow and adopt environmentally friendly practices.

Another step that those kinds of businesses might want to take is to contact EOS Data Analytics, and we will encourage you and suggest where to start. You can also reach out to me directly via LinkedIn.

I think we should also mention what will happen if we fail to advance agricultural technology incorporation into farmers’ lives. There is little light in the future that might emerge in that scenario. Climate change will wipe out most of the crops due to constantly changing environmental conditions. The remaining crops are likely to drown in the over-fertilized and over-treated inputs. The growing population will demand more food, but it will be scarce. The economic and ecological consequences are hard to imagine.

New technologies and innovations require additional research and testing, and that may scare away some farmers and businesses from trying it. Despite that, the cost of doing nothing is much higher. In Europe, the transition to sustainable agriculture practices is said to cost around €30 billion (US$32.3 billion). However, soil undernourishment and degradation will lead to smaller crop yields and cost almost two times more — €50 billion (US$53.9 billion) ^{Ferrer, B. (2023, December 13). Soil health: Sustainable agriculture transition in Europe will cost US$32.3 billion, flags FDE report. Food Ingredients First.}. Agribusinesses worldwide require solutions, and the agritech market is here to provide them.

Rapidly developing agritech will continue its growth until the end of this decade. The white paper covers EOSDA’s analytics up to 2030, but trends extend beyond that. So far, climate change accounts for crop loss, harsh weather conditions, and soil and water resource decline, among other discrepancies. Farmers, as frontiers of this fight, need to be ready to meet the future with as much tech at their disposal as possible. Thus, EOS Data Analytics works hard to provide innovative solutions to diverse industries within the agricultural sector.