13TSB_ACT: Tractor-mount sensing for precision application of Nitrogen and control of milling wheat protein content.

The project brings together agronomy research, on rapid protein assays for milling wheat, with engineering of photonic sensors, image recognition & mechatronic systems. The ultimate goal is to deliver a tractor-mount scanning unit for autonomous mapping of protein content across wheat fields, to a spatial resolution better than 2 square metres at full field application speeds (17km/hr) for precision application of nitrogen (N). N is the primary input cost and 80% of the carbon footprint, in milling wheat production, however it is over applied in 3 out of 4 cases. This system will enable growers to dynamically map protein distribution in the crop canopy so that all areas attain the threshold 13% protein content. The Sainsbury's 'Camgrain Consortium' of 500 growers will act as early adopters for the retrofittable system, which will incorporate emerging technologies in high-speed infrared photonics, steered on a miniature robotic gimbal through rapid embedded image processing.

The project brings together agronomy research, on rapid protein assays for milling wheat, with engineering of photonic sensors, image recognition & mechatronic systems. The ultimate goal is to deliver a tractor-mount scanning unit for autonomous mapping of protein content across wheat fields, to a spatial resolution better than 2 square metres at full field application speeds (17km/hr) for precision application of nitrogen (N). N is the primary input cost and 80% of the carbon footprint, in milling wheat production, however it is over applied in 3 out of 4 cases. This system will enable growers to dynamically map protein distribution in the crop canopy so that all areas attain the threshold 13% protein content. The Sainsbury's 'Camgrain Consortium' of 500 growers will act as early adopters for the retrofittable system, which will incorporate emerging technologies in high-speed infrared photonics, steered on a miniature robotic gimbal through rapid embedded image processing.

Phase 1 of the exploitation strategy will be to gain initial market uptake through the 'Camgrain Consortium' of growers. This consortium of over 500 growers, in the East Anglia area (UK), includes circa 30 identified 'technology aware' farm managers all of whom feed into the Camgrain Stores cooperative group for subsequent distribution of the grains. To give this project focus and ensure a tangible deliverable by the closure date, Finches Farm has been identified from this sub-grouping to provide the first beta-test facility for the tractor-mount sensor units. The farm incorporates an appropriate area of premium milling wheat production (70 hectares) on which to base the first commercial demonstration. Camgrain Stores will receive the harvested grain from Finches Farm, as well as the Phase 2 adopters, and will undertake standardised QA laboratory analysis for grain protein and moisture content of representative samples of each of the delivered tanker batches. By virtue of previous records, held by Camgrain, on grain protein-content variability from Finches Farm the strategy will be to gain broader farmer uptake, and provide evidence for longer-term adoption by Finches Farm, through providing quantitative analysis of the reduction in grain protein and moisture variability following the introduction of the sensor-controlled approach. This will notionally require at least 3-5 seasons of reduced grain variability data, alongside the corresponding field records of reduced total N application volumes, before adequate evidence maybe gained to convince the wheat-farming industry to undertake significant investment in this smart N sensing technology.

The Phase 2 project will position the technology at an appropriate degree of technology readiness for entering a Phase 3 programme of sensor deployment and further value-engineering of the unit, in partnership with the large machinery providers (Garfords, JCB, etc), who will also form an element of the Phase 2 partnership. Phase 3 sales of the units will be to the broader Camgrain grower consortium, possibly at preferential rates so that Camgrain Stores can fully exploit the benefits of offering lower variability protein composition across the majority of silos as supplied by the Camgrain Consortium farmers. This would complement Sainsbury's ultimate goal which, can be expressed on two levels. Firstly to offer customers the higher-level ambition of a reassurance that Sainsbury's in-store bakeries have used the state-of-the-art in engineering to guarantee minimised impact on carbon footprint, using metrics which can be backed up with quantified field data from the sole supply of the in-store bakery flour from Camgrain growers. Secondly, the more pragmatic practical ambition to ensure that all of Sainsbury's in-store bakeries receive a uniformity of premium-grade flour such that bakery products produced in the supermarket are consistently high quality, give the same taste-experience and are free from defects (cracking, charring, burning) irrespective of the national location of any given store and its farm-to-mill supply chain. The Phase 4 exploitation would then see the tractor-mount sensor technology, and its integrated patch field-spray systems for precision N application, marketed to non Camgrain farmers at a full commercial rate. This would include export sales to wheat growers and supply-chains outside of the UK. The first of these being in farming regions that are similar to East Anglia within Northern Europe, notably in France and Germany. Phase 4 would also see the sensor technology extended to other applicable protein crops, in particular those with greater relevance outside of the UK, such as soybean and maize. Sainsbury's and the Camgrain growers will maintain the competitive edge in these developments by retaining the position as the first route for early-adoption and beta-testing of any relevant new aspect of the on tractor protein sensors.