- Ecorobotix tested its ultra-high precision ARA sprayer, based on artificial intelligence, on an onion plot in Loiret, in collaboration with La Coopérative Beauce Champagne Oignon (BCO).
- Tests show promising results, with a reduction of up to 93% in the TFI (Phytosanitary Treatment Frequency Indicator).
Yverdon-les-Bains, Switzerland, 31st January 2022. This autumn, Ecorobotix, a start-up offering ultra-high precision farming solutions tested its ARA smart towed sprayer on an onion crop plot in Loiret (France). The results are promising and allow the volume of product used to be reduced, compared to a conventional weed control solution.
Promising results: a precise and economical technology
The test was carried out by La Coopérative BCO and the Loiret Chamber of Agriculture, as part of the Club Oignon Régional Centre Val de Loire, with financial assistance from the Centre-Val de Loire region.
Two treatment sessions spaced apart by seven days were carried out and have helped to highlight the following:
- The precision and effectiveness of ARA in targeting plants, measured by using methylene blue on the crop. Ecorobotix’s technology makes it possible, thanks to its integrated artificial vision, to classify the plants and to adjust watering by ultra-short jets up to an accuracy of 8x3cm.
- The effective reduction of 93% in the TFI (Phytosanitary Treatments Frequency Indicator) compared to the volume of product used with a conventional weeding technique on another section of the plot.
Therefore, the ARA sprayer offers producers and farmers many advantages over other types of weed control processes: a decrease in the quantity of chemical products used, a high reduction of residue and phytotoxicity on crops and fewer losses.
"I voluntarily accepted the proposal to test a new method, which allowed me to reduce the use of phytosanitary products. The subject is of utmost importance for our business since, logically, the TFIs determine whether the High Environmental Value certification and other seals of approval can be achieved. The test is conclusive regarding this aspect and we await to see the next production and the impact on the yield obtained, as the control of products can only have a beneficial effect on the quality of the harvest. We want to continue the experiment on other larger crops."
Damien Jamet, farmer member of La Coopérative BCO.
Links
Visuals of the test with BCO can be downloaded from this link
Official photos of ARA by can be downloaded via this link
Press release in PDF : Link
About La Coopérative B.C.O
La Coopérative Beauce Champagne Oignon (B.C.O) specialises in producing, packaging and commercialising onions, garlic, shallots and echalion shallots. It brings together 55 producers/members over a surface area of 650 hectares, spread across three production areas: the regions of Centre-Val de Loire (Loiret), Île-de-France and Grand Est (Champagne/Ardennes).
In order to meet the expectations of its clients in terms of products, the new Semaises site, opened in 2018, brings together the most advanced technologies in Europe. Optical sorters and infrared cameras to study onions bulb-by-bulb and to determine the most appropriate use for consumption. A 100% automated flow management.
Therefore, B.C.O relies on its 50 years of experience in production and is a major player in the agro-ecological transition in this sector: preserving soils, restoring biodiversity, plant health and reducing synthetic inputs.
Today, La Coopérative B.C.O has 45 employees, produces 30,000 tons of onions a year and has a storage capacity of 10,000 tons for a long-term supply.
Press Contact
Isabelle Aeschlimann
Communication officer Ecorobotix
media@ecorobotix.com