Epsilon Archive for Student Projects

Abstract

Our globalised food system is facing numerous challenges with food demand expected to increase due to a growing population, and crops increasingly threatened by climate change. In this context, Digital Technologies (DT) have been promoted as one of the solutions to increase productivity and enable a better use of resources, while reducing the impacts of agriculture on the environment. However, there is an uneven distribution of these technologies among farmers and types of farming, with DT being primarily designed and adapted to large-scale conventional farming systems. At the same time, farms following agroecological principles have demonstrated high productivity and resilience, suggesting an opportunity to leverage DT in supporting a transition toward these practices. Some tools can support the adoption of more sustainable practices, such as the multi-criteria Decision Support System Soil Navigator, capable of assessing and providing recommendations of farm management practice to improve soil functions such as primary productivity, nutrient cycling, water purification and regulation, climate regulation and biodiversity and habitat provisioning. In the present study, Soil Navigator was applied to a case-study farm located in the South of Sweden in Scania, with the objective of evaluating the relevance and applicability of its management recommendations and determining whether these could support a transition to an agroecological production system, within the farm socio-economic context. A secondary objective of this study was to gather the perceptions of the use of the tool and other DT in general from farmers, policy makers, researcher and farm advisers to identify the limitations, opportunities, barriers and enabling conditions for the broader adoption of DT in agriculture. The findings indicate that Soil Navigator has the potential to provide a comprehensive assessment of the soil’s performance, while suggesting management of practices that can align with the farmer’s socio-economic context and values. Some limitations were identified, including the lack of specificity and adaptation of the recommendations provided to the Swedish context and the initial time investment required for data collection. Improved integration with existing technologies, customisation of the user interface, and recommendations adapted to the Swedish context could enhance the tool’s relevance and level of acceptation. This case study highlights the potential of DT to support agroecological transitions when designed according to the 10 elements of agroecology developed by the FAO. The principle of co-creation and sharing of knowledge proved to be particularly important and can be integrated into the development of solutions by adopting a participatory approach, involving farmers from their concept to their validation and promotion among established or newly created networks. Further research is recommended to assess the scalability of Soil Navigator across different farm types and agroecological transition stages.