AgNet DEMO

Category: Florida Ag Expo

  • Farming’s Future: How Will Technology Impact the Industry?

    UF/IFAS photo/Yiannis Ampatzidis

    What does the technological future look like for vegetable and specialty crop producers? In an era where they compete in a global marketplace against rising imports, producers can no longer rely on cheap land or labor; they must compete on the basis of technology and innovation.

    What does that future look like? Come find out at the Ag Tech Expo, hosted by the UF/IFAS Southwest Florida Research and Education Center on May 10-11. It is a virtual event, but farmers can click here to register.

    Conference Registration is $100. Student Registration is $25. The price for trade show vendors is $250.

    Agenda

    DAY 1 – Monday, May 10, 2021

    Opening Remarks  – J. SCOTT ANGLE, PH.D. ,  Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources , University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS)

    Keynote Speaker  – DR. RANVEER CHANDRA , Microsoft – Data-driven agriculture: How the Cloud and AI can help reimagine food from seed to plate.

    10:00 AM – 12:00 PM   – Morning Sessions  

    Precision Agriculture / Sustainability (Monday am)

    10:00 am  Scott Berden /Miquel Clavijo, US Sugar – Leveraging IoT and Remote Sensing Technology at US Sugar.   

    10:30 am  Louis DeMaso, Lipman Family Farms – Sustainability Case Study: Precision Agriculture for Maximum Resource-Use Efficiency.

    11:00 am Dr. Sanjay Shukla, UF IFAS SWFREC – Streamlining growing environment for fresh produce with compact bed geometry system.

    11:30 am  Tony Mucciardi, Tree Radar – TRU GPR and IR imagery for root morphology maps.

    UAV Session (Monday a.m.) 

    10:00 am  Nathan Stein, pix4d – A good map is the first step in digitizing your field.

    10:30 am Dr. Spyros Fountas, AUA, Greece – The role of UAVs for crop yield estimation.

    11:00 am Dr. Yiannis Ampatzidis, UF IFAS SWFREC –  Agroview: AI-based technology for precision agriculture.

    11:30 am Drew Baustian, Micasense – Image Classification, Irrigation Monitoring & More Using Multispectral & Thermal Imaging.

    Genomics Session (Monday a.m.)

    10:00 am Dr. Tong Geon Lee, UF IFAS GCREC – CRISPR: A technical breakthrough for crop research.

    10:30 am Dr. Samuel Hutton, UF IFAS GCREC – Applications of Marker Assisted Selection in the UF/IFAS Tomato Breeding Program.

    11:00 am Dr. Vance Whitaker, UF IFAS GCREC -Genomic Prediction in Strawberry Breeding.

    11:30 am Dr. Marcio Resende, UF IFAS Department of Horticulture – Genomics and phenomics applied to sweet corn breeding.

    12:00 PM – 2:00 PM   –    Break and Technology Show – Virtual Trade Show

    2:00 PM – 4:00 pm   –    Afternoon Sessions

    Robotics Session (Monday p.m.)

    2:00 pm Dr. Pal Johan From, Saga Robotics – Thorvald – and autonomous multipurpose platform for agriculture.

    2:30 pm Bob Pitzer, HCR – Robotic strawberry harvesting.

    3:00 pm Dr. Stavros Vougioukas, UCDavis – Human and ag-robot collaboration for fruit harvesting.

    3:30 pm Dr. Manoj Karkee, WSU – Tree fruit harvesting: Accomplishments and challenges.

    Protected Ag Session (Monday p.m.) 

    2:00 pm Dr. Kevin Folta, UF IFAS Department of Horticulture – Closed Controlled Environment.

    2:30 pm Jennifer Waxman, Executive Director, The Villages Grown™ – Bridging Agriculture and Wellness — How CEA may be the next movement towards the Food-as Medicine approach.

    3:00 pm Bob Hochmuth – Protected Ag- Technology Under Cover

    3:30 pm Federico Boscolo, Cultiva Farms – TBA

     Jonathan Way, Colusa Farms – TBA

    Innovations in Water and Nutrient Management (Monday p.m.) 

    2:00 pm Doug Crawford, BMP Logic – Real-time irrigation management with wireless soil moisture sensor – adoptions in North America and lessons learned.

    2:30 pm  Grower’s perspective on technology adoption in managing water and nutrient over three decades, Lipman Family Farms.

    3:00 pm Dr. Sanjay Shukla and TBA – Circular nitrogen and phosphorus economy.

    3:30 pm Dr. Sandra Guzman, UF IFAS IRREC – New technologies for efficient irrigation.

    4:00 PM – 5:00 PM   –    Technology Show – Virtual Trade Show

    5:00 PM – 6:00 PM   –    Virtual Party (Happy Hour)

    DAY 2 – Tuesday, May 11, 2021

    Keynote Speaker  TBA 

    10:00 AM – 12:00 PM   Morning Sessions

    Automation Artificial Intelligence, and Precision Spraying (Tuesday a.m.)

    10:00 am Dr. Lynn M Sosnoskie, Cornell University, – Review of weed management technology.

    10:30 am Dr. Nathan Boyd, UF IFAS GCREC – Weed Management for the Future.

    11:00 am Dr. Thanos Balafoutis, IBO, Greece – Variable rate technologies for precision spraying.

    11:30 am Keith Hollingsworth, CC and/or Dr. Yiannis Ampatzidis, UF IFAS SWFREC – Smart tree crop sprayer utilizing sensor fusion and AI.

    Environmental Services (Tuesday a.m.)

    10:00 am Benita Whelan, Florida Cattlemen’s Association – Dispersed Water Management System.

    10:20 am Dr. Sanjay Shukla, UF IFAS, SWFREC, and Linda McCarthy, Lykes Bros Inc.  Payment for water storage and treatment services program in the Everglades Basin– From pilot to large-scale implementation.  

    11:00 am Ernie Shea, Solutions from the Land – Florida Climate Smart Agriculture Working Group Overview.

    11:30 am David M. (Max) Williamson, Williamson Law + Policy PLLC – High-level Overview of Carbon Markets.

    12:00 PM – 2:00 PM   –    Break and Technology Show – Virtual Trade Show

    2:00 PM – 4:00 pm   –    Afternoon Sessions

    Automation and Pest/Disease Management (Tuesday p.m.) 

    2:00 pm Dr. Natalia Peres, UF IFAS GCREC – Ultraviolet Robot for control of Powdery mildew in Strawberry.

     2:30 pm Dr. Ozgur Batuman, UF IFAS SWFREC – Development of a novel automated delivery system for citrus trees.

     3:00 pm Michael Otte, Rantizo – Drone Spraying, the Future Present of Agriculture.

     3:30 pm Liron Brish, Farm Dog – Easily digitizing your in-field workforce – the foundation for efficiency and effectiveness.

    Water Management I Mixed session I (Tuesday p.m.) 

    2:00 pm Dr. George Vellidis, UGA – SmartIrrigation – a Pathway to Sustainable Intensification.

     2:30 pm Dan Urban, Analytics Lead, CERESIMAGING – Managing the variability in transpiration and vigor with aerial imagery. 

     3:00 pm Grant Allen, C&M North America (Checchi & Magli) – Vegetable/Melon Transplanting – Speed, Precision, Automation, etc.

     3:30 pm TBA

    Traceability/Blockchain (Tuesday p.m.) 

    2:00 pm TBA,  AgTools – Using data to improve market access and profit margins.

     2:30 pm Bristol Wells, Highlands Agriculture – Virtualizing the Business of Ag with Highland Ag Solutions.

     3:00 pm Creg Fielding, Fusionware – Vertically Integrated Supply Chain – Get out of spreadsheet hell!

     3:30 pm Cale Teeter, Microsoft – Blockchain.  

      4:00 PM – 5:00 PM   –    Round Table and Closing

      5:00 PM – 6:00 PM   –    Virtual Party (Happy Hour)

    More Information

    Click here for more information about the event.

    Why is Innovation Needed?

    Population is expanding around the world. Farmers will need to produce more food in the next 50 years but with fewer resources and less environmental impact.

    The developments in agricultural robotics, machine vision, ultra-precision farming; autonomous farming; artificial intelligence (AI); and genomics will transform the way farming is conducted. These technologies coupled with AI are enabling a revolution which will eventually upend the familiar way of conducting daily farming practices.  

  • Florida Ag Expo Update

    Organizers of the Florida Ag Expo, an annual trade show with educational seminars for vegetable and specialty crop growers, have decided to forego this year’s event amid COVID-19 concerns.

    “While we see businesses re-open and people are returning to a sense of normalcy, we know that has only been made possible by everyone doing their part. Therefore, we made the decision not to go forward with this year’s show,” said Robin Loftin, president of AgNet Media.

    “The Florida Ag Expo brings attendees from across the state and beyond. While we would love to host those attendees for another great event, we believe attendees’ health and safety must come first.”

    Event Details

    Rechcigl

    Hosted at the Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC) and managed by AgNet Media, the Florida Ag Expo is an annual gathering of growers and industry leaders. The one-day educational and networking event includes a full schedule of field tours, research presentations and a trade show.

    “Due to the pandemic, we are unfortunately having to cancel this year’s Florida Ag Expo,” says Jack Rechcigl, professor and director of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences Gulf Coast Research and Education Center and Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center.

    “However, next year, we will have the expo at the regularly scheduled time (Nov. 17, 2021).”

    The Florida Ag Expo began in 2006 after the GCREC opened in 2005 in Wimauma, Florida. AgNet Media managed the first Florida Ag Expo in 2019 when record attendance was achieved.

    Mark your calendars for the 2021 Florida Ag Expo on Nov. 17, 2021. More details will follow.

  • UF/IFAS Appoints Interim Director of Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center

    By: Lourdes Rodriguez, 954-577-6363 office, 954-242-8439 mobile, rodriguezl@ufl.edu

    DAVIE, Fla. – Jack Rechcigl has been appointed as interim Center Director of the UF/IFAS Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center (UF/IFAS FLREC).  

    Jack Rechcigl. Photo taken 11-07-18.

    On May 12, Rechcigl stepped in to oversee the operations and research at the UF/IFAS Fort Lauderdale Research and Education Center, previously led by retiring center director Robin Giblin-Davis. Giblin-Davis, who first took the helm of the facility in 2009 as acting co-director, transitioned in 2017 to serve as sole acting center director. He is an internationally celebrated scientist, whose area of study has been applied and basic research concerning soil, plant-parasitic and insect-associated nematodes and nematode biodiversity. He retires as an emeritus professor after 35 years at UF/IFAS.

    “My role as Center Director is to support and mentor the award-winning scientists, faculty and graduate students who are dedicated to solving the local and regional agricultural, urban and wildlife issues that comprise southeast Florida’s unique make-up, while continuing the mission of FLREC,” said Rechcigl. “The caliber of research conducted by these dedicated scientists is impressive and addresses the unique needs and issues that growers and community residents face in South Florida’s combined agriculture and urban environment.”

    Areas of research at FLREC include sustainable management for tropical and subtropical landscape systems. Scientists also aim to reduce the impact of invasive animals and plants on natural and highly urbanized habitats. Other areas of research include termite identification and distribution, wildlife ecology and conservation, palm production and maintenance, environmental horticulture, aquatic plant management, turfgrass science and sea level resilience in South Florida.

    As interim Center Director, Rechcigl will serve double duty. As an internationally recognized professor in the soil and water sciences department at UF/IFAS for the past 34 years, Rechcigl served as the lead architect of the programs and is the current Center Director of UF/IFAS Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC) in Balm, Florida. since 2005. The state-of-the-art center operates from two sites. The 475-acre main facility in Balm, located in southern Hillsborough County, hosts most of the center’s research activities, including laboratories, field and greenhouse studies, a diagnostic lab, faculty offices and graduate student housing. The other site is home to the GCREC teaching program (UF/IFAS CALS), based at Hillsborough Community College’s Plant City campus. He currently oversees 200 employees, which includes faculty, biological scientists, staff, undergraduate and graduate students and international interns.

    Historically, GCREC has been recognized as a premier research site with efforts since the mid-1920s in tomato, strawberry, vegetables, ornamentals and landscape crops. Over the last 20 years, Rechcigl has led the charge with faculty members in making substantial contributions for the continued production and health of these industries, as well as exploring new opportunities and alternative crops for the region that include pomegranate, blackberry, industrial hemp and hops. Rechcigl has established the highly successful Florida Agricultural Expo, which is attended by 1,000 farmers, politicians, government and university officials from around the country each year.

    Research at GREC has also been focused on improving sustainability through the development of precision agricultural technology. Some examples include tractor software that can distinguish crops like tomatoes and strawberries from weeds for precise herbicide application and the use of ultraviolet light to treat and prevent Powdery mildew (Sphaerotheca macularis) on strawberries.