Precision farming - the environmental challenge

Precision farming makes use of information technologies in agriculture. With the satellite positioning system and electronic communication standards, position and time may be integrated into all procedures connected to farming. Today, precision farming is primarily geared towards site-specific application of fertilisers with the resulting cost advantages being quite small. Thus, precision farming will likely gain in importance only when viable additional benefits, such as reduced environmental burdens and increased flow of information, are recognised and evaluated and become part of the reward itself. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.