App helps farmers identify plant diseases and deficiencies

A new interactive app use artificial intelligence to enable farmers to diagnose plants and determine the best course of treatment.

With a global food shortage becoming an ever more pressing reality, technology has stepped in to help make farming as efficient as possible. We have seen the solar-powered garden robot that waters plants and scares away pests, helping people to become more self-sufficient on a smaller scale. An urban development in Dubai on the other hand aims to bring sustainable farming to a larger scale, creating a method of farming that uses 90 percent less water. Now, Agrio is a free app that helps farmers identify and eradicate disease amongst their crops. In turn this helps to combat the shortage of agricultural experts on hand to aid farmers.

Agrio is an Israeli-based startup which formed based on the knowledge that there was an estimated 30 percent of yield losses worldwide. Their smartphone application hopes to be a preventive method that enables farmers to diagnose, treat, and contain diseases in their crops. The app is powered by an artificial intelligence (AI) engine, Saillog, which deploys algorithms on mobile devices. This enables Saillog to share its database of information with farmers worldwide, quickly and easily. The intelligence engine is able to identify hundreds of diseases and deficiencies whilst obtaining more data.

The application is very user-friendly. Farmers simply need to take a photo of their diseased plant, and upload it to the app. The application then analyzes the photo using the AI algorithm, and within seconds users will be provided with a diagnosis. Users can also share their images with a team of experts who can give them their opinion on the best methods for treatment.

Through this technology Agrio takes advantage of those with the knowledge to help farmers on both a big and small scale, providing a global support network for farmers. How else could technology distribute information to help those in need? What other innovative solutions could be invented to help combat the global food crisis?