Growing more while shrinking water consumption is one sweet deal
Agrinoze demonstrates the impact of precision irrigation and dense planting in the cultivation of sugarcane while reducing the crop’s water footprint by 50%
Agricultural production of commodities makes up 40% of total global deforestation, which is a serious blow for biodiversity. Biological diversity keeps our planet in check and is responsible for the balance of ecosystems, including maintaining clean air and water. In many Eastern regions, tropical forests are rapidly being cleared for agricultural purposes. This is why we chose Southeast Asia as the location to launch a project that demonstrates land utilization potential in the cultivation of sugarcane.
Our goal: to secure the dwindling number of forests that we have left.
Other than the loss of biodiversity, deforestation has a causal link to soil erosion, GHG emissions, water cycle disruption, and many other factors that fuel global warming.
Sugarcane — How dense can we go?
We have taken on the challenge of increasing the efficiency of existing agricultural land in order to reduce the need for deforestation. We began planting sugarcane in October 2020, applying a dense planting protocol of rows 60 cm apart and seedlings 20 cm apart, compared to the local industry standard of about 90 cm and 30 cm respectively. We expect that this will increase yield by 40%.
Water Usage
This dense planting protocol is possible thanks to real-time soil analysis and autonomous drip irrigation. Agrinoze’s system monitors plants 24/7 and dictates a non-linear irrigation model that adapts to a dynamic environment and specific plant needs. Our plot’s average daily water consumption is 45 cubic meters per hectare, 50% less than the industry benchmark of 90 cubic meters per hectare.
Sweeter than Sugar
Agrinoze also determines and executes autonomous decisions in terms of fertilizer use. Since April, there was no need for fertigation, and lab results indicate that crop sugar levels are nonetheless higher than the benchmark. Sugarcane is composed of 70–75% water, about 10–15% fiber, and 13–15% sugar in the form of sucrose. Several samples from our plot were sent for lab analysis earlier this year and interim results indicate that even in an early growth stage, sugar content has already reached 16.7%. We expect to see an even more significant increase following the harvest.
Moving forward
The seeming abundance of land has led us to perceive it as an unlimited resource. In reality, the land is one of our planet’s valuable and very limited resources, and the consequences of this fallacy are becoming increasingly apparent. As the UN Convention on Biological Diversity draws near, governments are recognizing the importance of deforestation as it relates to biodiversity - The UK’s Environmental Audit Committee even recommended the prohibition of deforestation-linked commodities. Regulation is an important step, however, these commodities are a vital part of our lives and economies so prohibition alone is not enough. There is an urgent need to adopt agricultural methods that better utilize land resources.
Our next project will test the prediction that Agrinoze’s real-time soil analysis is effective for an even more aggressive planting protocol for sugarcane, with a distance of 20 cm between both rows and seedlings. Stay tuned for updates and future projects:
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