Photo: CNH Industrial
Farmers are constantly looking for ways to do more with less, which means improving the quality of their crop while optimising the use of inputs, preserving the health of the soil, and reducing the environmental impact of their activities. It’s a delicate balancing act where advanced technologies can make all the difference.
With New Holland’s NutriSense system, which was awarded the Silver Medal at the 2021 SIMA Innovation Awards, farmers can access valuable measurements of crop moisture, starch, crude protein, fibre, ash and crude fat content in every area of their field.
According to New Holland, the farmer can visualise this data with an intuitive, user-friendly interface on their MyPLM Connect portal and use it to make informed decisions that will enable them to market their crops most profitably.
Eduardo Nicz, New Holland PLM product marketing manager, says the company’s strategy is to integrate digital technologies to deliver smart and connected agriculture to its customers, with easy-to-use solutions.
“The NutriSense system is an excellent example: it provides farmers with detailed agronomic data collected by their New Holland combine or forage harvesters in the field. This will enable them to use their inputs most efficiently and harvest a crop they will sell at better prices,” says Nicz.
Better decision-making
The NutriSense system on New Holland’s FR Forage Cruiser can help livestock farmers in different phases of the farming cycle, starting with understanding and managing field health and performance using year-on-year (y/y) field data.
They can also use the measurements collected by the machine to determine if there is soil contamination in the forage, so they can add a safeguard for the livestock.
At harvest time, the crop moisture data supports the farmer’s decision-making on animal feed storage. The crude protein, crude fat and starch content of the crop enables the farmer to improve the animal feed ration content and quality.
Cash-crop farmers operating a New Holland CR or a CX7 and CX8 Combine with NutriSense will also benefit from the y/y field data to manage the health and performance of their fields. Understanding the crop protein levels across their field can be very useful when calculating fertiliser application rates for the following seasons, optimising the use of inputs.
Knowing what the protein content in the grain is enables the farmer to determine whether the crop is suitable for animal feed or for milling, the latter of which sells at a higher price.
Knowing the value of their crop at harvest will also help them decide how to store the crop.
The levels of crop nutrients, such as starch, also determine whether the crop is suitable for biofuel production.
According to Lars Skjoldager Sørensen, New Holland crop harvesting product manager, the detailed information provided by the NutriSense system enables farmers to optimise the use of inputs, determine the best way to manage their crops, and understand the value of their crops in order to obtain the best prices for them.
