There is no denying that we currently live in the age of big data. And although most people still seem to associate it only with companies in technological and financial spheres, it’s impact on the agriculture industry is no less. And the evidence of that is the growing number of precision agriculture software on the market.

As any other business, farming seeks new ways to cut costs, maximize profits, and cater to consumer’s needs by producing high-quality and trustworthy food products. And the implementation of a business intelligence system is one of the main elements that help agronomists to achieve these goals.

The Meaning of Business Intelligence in Agriculture

A modern agricultural enterprise generates a huge volume of data: accounting systems, satellite monitoring, soil analysis results, yield data, and various planned indicators. With the introduction of new technologies into the activities of the farm, this volume of information increases even more. That is where the issue arises: the collected data does not correlate with each other, and relationships between different units of data are not built. And modern systems of business intelligence offer a helping hand in solving this problem.

Ultimately, business intelligence can be systems, processes, software, and other technologies that collect and report on every piece of data that is critical to successful business operation. And the goal behind it lies in enabling companies to make better business decisions.

Speaking of the agricultural sphere, business intelligence can be applied to cover a wide range of technologies: mobile devices, cloud-based software, precision agriculture management systems, ground sensors, etc. A business intelligence system can help agronomists manage all aspects of their farm’s operation by collecting and structuring various data that can be used to make any enhancements if necessary.

The main task of a business intelligence system is allowing users to ask as many questions as possible and making the best decisions while searching for answers. For example, when the farmers want to find out why the yield is significantly different in fields that are located nearby.

Apart from this, it’s critical to consolidate information and make it available to all employees that are involved in particular farm processes. It means the data could be easily accessed on various devices and not depend on a particular person when collecting and analyzing it.

How Business Intelligence Assists Farming

Now, let’s go through the benefits that a business intelligence system offers specifically for agriculture.

More Competitive Advantages

Competing for a market share is nothing unusual for an agricultural business, especially when many regions grow the same crop due to the same natural conditions. A business intelligence system enables both better decisions and improvement opportunities, which allows for gaining advantages over competitors.

Data-based Decision-making

A business intelligence system offers real-time information on all business operations so that farm owners can better understand how their particular decisions impact the farm.

Enhanced Forecasting

Prediction is critical when aiming for success in a farming business. Production planning should be carried out in advance and consider the weather, expected demand, labor needs, and potential threats that could impact the desired result. A business intelligence system helps farmers with forecasting through allowing data collection over time and trends or anomalies detection.

Agri-tech Integration

While the use of smart tech in farming is growing, a business intelligence system can serve as a bridge, connecting multiple technologies and different data to form better insights into farming operations.

Overall, business intelligence emerged as a tool increasing efficiency when working with data. And in the conditions of increased competition in the markets, business owners need to target customers, employees, production, and processes effectively. And it’s possible only with a deeper analysis of the enterprise's activities. A farm is no exception. A business intelligence system enables farmers to look at the farm processes and easily compare set goals to actual results for further effective planning.