Towards smart farming solutions in the U.S. and South Korea: A comparison of the current status

Abstract

Smart farming solutions combine information, data software tools, and technology with the intent to improve agricultural production. While smart farming concepts are well described in the literature, the potential societal impacts of smart farming are less conspicuous. To demonstrate how smart farming solutions could influence future agricultural production, agri-business and rural communities and their constituents, this article compares smart farming approaches and reasons behind the pursuit of smart farming solutions by the U.S. and South Korea. The article compares agricultural assets and productivity among the two countries as well as the technical and societal challenges impacting agricultural production as a basis to understanding the motivations behind and pathways for developing smart farming solutions. In doing so, the article compares some of the technological and social advantages and disadvantages of smart farming, dependending on the choice and implementation of smart farming solutions. The South Korean government has implemented a national policy to establish smart farming communities; a concept that addresses the entire agri-food supply chain. In the U.S., a national plan to develop smart farming technologies does not exist. However, discrete smart farming solutions driven mainly by competition in the private sector have resulted in high-tech solutions that are advancing smart farming concepts. The differences in approaches and reporting of successes and failures between the two countries could facilitate the rate of evolution of successful smart farming solutions, and moreover, could provide pathways to facilitate sustainable development goals in developing countries where smart farming activities are currently underway.

Keywords

• Agri-food
• Climate change
• Information technology
• Sustainable agriculture