Revolutionizing Irrigation for Growers with Autonomous Execution
AMSTERDAM, March 5, 2024 - Source.ag, the provider of AI solutions for fruit and vegetable growers, today launched Source Irrigation Control: an autonomous irrigation solution that intelligently adjusts irrigation strategy execution in response to changing weather conditions and plant data.
The newest addition to Source.ag's product suite helps growers scale operations and improve irrigation management, while decreasing the need for manual intervention and the time to adapt to new seed varieties or locations. The grower sets the irrigation targets, and Source Irrigation Control does the rest. Using AI models fed with weather forecasts and plant data to predict water and nutrient uptake, this new market innovation saves resources and growers’ time. Growers can set irrigation targets to suit their preferred cultivation strategy, combining their cultivation knowledge with Source.ag’s data science capabilities.
Rien Kamman, CEO and Co-Founder of Source.ag says:
We are thrilled to launch Source Irrigation Control for growers around the world. Currently, managing irrigation effectively can be a huge challenge for fruit and vegetable producers, for whom it’s impossible to keep up with the impact of changes in weather conditions 24/7. Source Irrigation Control monitors local weather changes every fifteen minutes and automatically adjusts irrigation to accommodate them. After the successful launch of our first product, Source Track, and the complementary Source Plant App, this latest launch means growers can now harness the competitive advantages of AI for data interpretation and irrigation.’
Source Irrigation Control’s data-driven irrigation solution offers growers multiple benefits in terms of crop quality, resource management, and business growth opportunities. The system predicts the water and nutrient uptake of plants and then applies its findings to a proactive irrigation plan that promotes root growth and healthy root development. Because AI is used to assess and clean sensor data which then updates growers’ unique irrigation models regularly, growers are free to spend their time on other value-added activities. The reduction in manual intervention means growers can manage many more hectares, allowing them to quickly scale operations. Equally, the system’s adaptability makes coping with new circumstances, climates, or seed varieties easier and more cost-effective.
Source.ag worked with Rainbow Growers, Agro Care and CombiVliet on a pilot for Source Irrigation Control, executing the day-to-day irrigation strategy in the partners’ greenhouses autonomously. Supported by Source's algorithms, the number of days during which the plants received near-perfect irrigation increased to more than double the industry baseline.
Joeri Everse, Growing Specialist at CombiVliet says:
During the Source Irrigation Control Pilot we saw Source is able to automate our irrigation strategy which reduces manual monitoring – and we’re looking forward to being able to manage more hectares and onboard new growers more easily in the future. We think that data-driven solutions like Source Irrigation Control will drive modern agriculture.
Source.ag’s advanced AI technology is helping growers worldwide scale faster and operate more efficiently; boosting vegetable yields and creating more sustainable practices. Source.ag’s solutions have been rolled out across the largest global fresh vegetable segments—tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers—with the eventual aim of improving operations for all fruit and vegetable growers.
After the successful commercial launch and implementation of its first product, Source Track, a platform to track, compare, and improve cultivation, along with the complementary Source Plant App, the iPad application which makes plant data measurements faster and more accurate, the company is now rolling out Source Irrigation Control to growers worldwide.
Source.ag’s clients include Agro Care, C. Zwinkels, and other leading growers worldwide. Globally, more than 200 commercial greenhouses covering over 1400 hectares benefit from Source.ag’s revolutionary solutions.
Source.ag is accelerating access to fresh fruit and vegetables by empowering the world’s growers with AI. Founded in 2020 by Rien Kamman (CEO) and Ernst van Bruggen (CPO), Source.ag has brought together a team of experienced engineers and plant scientists and has partnered with the world’s leading growers to build the sector’s most advanced AI. Its AI solutions can simulate plant behavior for defining and implementing optimal cultivation strategies, taking into account millions of data points on climate, biology, and resources. By enabling more growers to operate more facilities more efficiently through pioneering tech, Source.ag is making covered greenhouse agriculture accessible, profitable, and globally scalable. Together, we’re on a mission to feed the world, in a climate-resilient and resource-efficient way.
Source Irrigation Control is now available!
Wireless Value sensors will now seamlessly integrate with Source API, enabling centralized data visualization and analysis.
With a shared vision of freeing up growers' time for more strategic and complex tasks, the new partners will focus on ensuring more greenhouses can leverage the power of technologies and AI
