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Thanks to the platform developed by xFarm Technologies, 130 farms belonging to the Legume Chain, led by Andriani, will be supported from January 2023 in a process of optimisation and digitisation of production activities.
How? By developing specific agronomic models for crop protection, creating new production manuals, and promoting new regenerative agriculture practices with a focus on sustainability.
Milan and Gravina in Puglia, Oct. 10, 2022 - Andriani Spa, a Benefit Company and BCorp, one of the most important companies in the food innovation sector, is growing and improving its digitisation process for legume production thanks to its collaboration with xFarm Technologies, a tech company focused on the digitisation of the agribusiness sector. A decisive element of this collaboration is the fusion of tradition and technological innovation within a historic Italian group, which consolidates the logic of digital to increase the sustainability of production, respecting biodiversity and the traceability of the production chain.
In order to achieve these ambitious goals, the tech company will provide the innovative Apulian company with the digital platform xFarm, which will easily support farmers and all operators in the supply chain at every stage of production: from farm management to monitoring the entire supply chain, with specific risk alerts for outbreaks of legume diseases, to sustainability management and enhancement with integrated calculation of various environmental indicators. Additionally, xFarm will support Andriani in developing new production manuals containing guidelines to help farmers adopt sustainable practices.
For Andriani, this is another step in its journey towards greater sustainability, a long-term commitment that sees it continuously engaged in implementing innovative and responsible solutions, as well as promoting an inclusive process that actively involves the entire supply chain, fostering a value-driven network.
The project will start in January 2023 with an initial involvement of 130 farms and will last five years. It will be fully operational by 2028, when 200 farms scattered throughout Italy will be involved and 7,000 hectares will be digitized.
The platform, available on both mobile and desktop, will enable comprehensive supply chain management by allowing farmers to monitor real-time data and optimise different production steps and farming practices, while supply chain managers can track aggregated farm data and compare key indicators such as carbon footprint, water footprint, eutrophication, and acidification.
In addition to the digitization part, the project includes the development of specific production manuals. Indeed, these will be updated with new chapters on regenerative farming practices, such as the use of cover crops, minimum tillage and green manure.
For the full implementation of the project, direct involvement of all stakeholders in the supply chain is planned, primarily farmers, who will undergo ad hoc training held by the team of agronomists and engineers at xFarm Technologies to introduce the platform and all the various functions and make sure that this tool is understood and used to the fullest.
Through the integration of IoT sensors, climate data, and predictive models, the xFarm platform enables full control over agronomic management: knowing the level of exposure to disease risk of leguminous crops allows, on the one hand, to prevent plant stress and, on the other hand, to reduce the use of plant protection products, thereby improving the sustainability of production.
The collection and analysis of data will also provide a more precise understanding of the environmental footprint within the supply chain, essential for improving decision-making and agronomic techniques at both the supply chain and individual farm levels, reducing resource waste and mitigating environmental impact.
"Sustainability, economic and environmental, is the real challenge for supply chains. The current year has shown us this: drought and raw material costs are putting farms in great difficulty. We need cutting-edge tools and technologies that increase the efficiency of agricultural realities on the one hand and decrease the environmental impact of entire productions on the other. We are happy to be at the side of a reality like Andriani in this path toward even more sustainable legume production, through digital " - explains Giovanni Causapruno, Agrifood business unit manager of xFarm Technologies.
"Especially in industry, to be fully achieved sustainability must involve an inclusive process that actively involves the entire supply chain. For this reason, as a company we are constantly committed to providing solutions and guidelines for conscious action and to stimulate innovative approaches, implementing dialogue and discussion with partners and suppliers, in the wake of cooperation and transparency," echoes Michele Andriani, President and CEO of Andriani S.p.A. Benefit Company and BCorp.
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