Where there is no internet…
Communication plays a key role in agriculture. Your operations with small scale producers require resilient and flexible technology that is capable of supporting your staff located across geographically-dispersed production areas. Internet has become essential for communication, but what if the internet is too slow or absent? Digital two-way radio can offer a solution for data transmission for voice, SMS, email, GPS location tracking, etc. “Even if different devices are being used on different operating platforms, the solution doesn’t have to be complex or cumbersome for end users,”, says Travis Heneveld, Director United Nations and International Accounts at Motorola Solutions. Let’s consider some examples of how MOTOTRBO digital radio solutions could benefit operations in remote agricultural production areas.
Field staff can work online while conducting field inspections and surveys to certify farms, use e-extension to train farmers and collect produce. Farmers can receive instant weather forecasts, production information and collection confirmations by SMS. The location of each staff member and collection vehicle, cattle, etc. can be tracked using GPS”.
The company offers a freeware application called SmartPTT to transfer files through a MOTOTRBO™ digital radio channel. SmartPTT File Transfer is specially designed for effective data transmission, taking into account the limitations of the connection provided by MOTOTRBO.
eProd Solutions has introduced wireless Bluetooth weighing scales and printers. The physical weighing and paperwork involved at the point of produce collection pose a challenge to the collection team. The field officers and collection teams have typically little time to weigh and record the deliveries made and at the same time prepare delivery confirmations. “Now eProd manages our paper based delivery group summary overviews that we hand over to our farmers, but now we can also print individual receipts during the collection. Our farmers love it”, Daniel Mbuvi, administrator of Equator Kenya.
How many phones have you lost already because of water or dropping them? 
Are you able to assess the quality of products that you buy from farmers? Can you objectively and quickly measure the product moisture content of Irish potato? Adulterations in milk – did your supplier add water to the milk? What about melanin? Is the mango “Ready to eat”? Does the avocado have a sufficient oil content? How to measure these and many other variables quickly and cost-effectively in the field at the moment you have to decide to buy or reject produce at the farm or collection centers? Are you able to log transport and storage conditions?
In the beginning of the year, we launched the eProd mobile application that you can use on your mobile devices in the field. With the mobile app, georeferenced data entry in the field is made easier, faster and much more efficient. The mobile app is used for field collections but has many more eProd functionalities fully integrated. The Field Inspection Module allows your staff to capture and assess production data for agriculture and livestock.
In our April Newsletter issue, we informed you about the strategic partnership between eProd and 
e-Agri East Africa Summit: eProd Solutions took part in the February/ March 2017 e-Agri Summit held in Nairobi where various companies in agribusiness were showcased. Key messages from the summit focused on fully unlocking Africa’s potential in agriculture and the need to create avenues of collaboration with different players including ICT to promote this agenda and eProd acting as a key player in this.
Weather Data is fundamental to agricultural intelligence because the effect of weather drives on crop physiology, pest pathology, and daily operational/economical decisions. aWhere’s unique weather data is specifically designed for agricultural use, and includes up to 10 years of daily observations across the entire agricultural earth, along with current weather and weather forecasts updated four times per day.