Yara has announced plans to make its variable rate application platform, Atfarm, completely free of charge for this coming season.
The announcement comes after positive feedback from farms using the technology last season to improve their nitrogen use efficiency and in light of the challenges currently faced by farmers, says Yara.
The platform is designed to help farmers apply nitrogen more precisely. Utilising satellite images to monitor crop growth, farmers and agronomists can create variable rate application maps in just minutes, says Yara’s Mark Tucker. “Farms are also able to use the N Tester BT to get field specific nitrogen recommendations for their cereal crops, as well as monitoring the leaves nitrogen status as the spring growth progress.”
Jari Pentinmaki, managing director of Yara UK adds: “With the removal of the subscription fee, we encourage farmers to take full advantage of Yara’s nitrogen fertiliser portfolio – by making use of the digital tools, they can save on fertiliser costs without compromising yield and quality, while at the same time benefitting the environment.”
‘Win-win’
The NFU welcomed the news and commenting at this week’s CropTec event, Matt Culley, NFU chair of the combinable crops board said: “We welcome the news from Yara – raising nitrogen use efficiency on farms is a win-win. Farmers need to buy less fertiliser, crops perform better and in comparison, to other decisions farmers might face it’s a relatively simple step to take. The fact that it also contributes to a lower carbon footprint is something that will inevitably gain in importance as carbon markets and supply chains adjust.”
