Technology In Agriculture
This is an interesting topic to discuss, and I would say that it’s because we live in a world where technology keeps evolving, and we really have to embrace it. But there are times when embracing it is really difficult, and this might be because of the cost that comes from embracing it.
In almost every aspect of our lives, technology has paved its way into our lives, be it education, marketing, finances, industry, agriculture, transportation, and many other aspects of our lives. It's always a pleasure to be a part of those embracing it.
Driving down to Technology in Agriculture, it is surely an undeniable fact that it has come to aid us a lot. I remember when we were having our farm practice in the higher institution, we were to plant some soybeans harvest them, and also process them.
In the planting stage, we had to clear the farm ourselves with cutlass and hoes, then till the soil, and make ridges for planting, all of these took a lot of our time before we could accomplish them. But in the end, we planted the soybeans and it grew very well.
It was time to harvest, the harvesting became a nightmare to us and that was because of the way we have to harvest and process it. Harvesting was not as tedious as the processing. We were to start uprooting each stand with the soya beans on it, the soil was so dry, so uprooting it was not as easy.
Then it was time to process. We got to the farm and then collected all the dry soya beanstalk, we got a big sack and then packed them inside it, tied it, and then started beating the sack with the soya beans in it. This is to make sure the soya beans are separated from the pud without wasting.
That was one of the craziest experiences we had on the farm. Then when it was our final year, we had to run some projects on cowpeas and cassava too. This time around I guess maybe because we have a smaller number, things were done with ease for us. This is where I got to realize the difference between technology and manual labor.
First off, clearing, tilling, and making ridges were done by tractors. And that was so swift, within a few hours hectares of land got tilled and ridged. Then we planted the seeds as we were told that there was a planter but not in good condition.
The harvest and processing was also easier than I expected because the harvest was done with a harvester and then we processed it using a machine.
That was a clear difference in the use of technology and manual labor. Apart from making work easier for farmers, it also makes it faster and increases production. An increase in production is surely an increase in profit. And that's what all farmers would want. No farmer or individual would pray for loss.
The only challenge here is that embracing technology is always way costlier. And also maintenance is not something easy. It's only for those who can afford it. If there could be a way to help the small-scale farmers to afford these machines then it would go a long way in contributing to the economic growth of the country.
This is my response to the HIVE LEARNERS weekly prompt in hive learners community for the Week 153 Edition 2 and the topic to be discussed is TECHNOLOGY AND PROFITS
Embracing technology is indeed costlier and that’s why those farmers who make use of it sometimes get greedy to make more profits than usual.
What they fail to realize is that there are people out there who are watching and one day because of how well or bad they are doing, they will either get a massive reward or go out of business.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts with us. 🥰
Yeah. Only if they know there would be rewards for all of their actions. And only time would tell.
Thanks so much for stopping by. Well appreciated
On the one hand, with the increase in technology can reduce the burden on us a little, on the other hand there are dangerous effects that occur in it, thank you very much for sharing with us your thoughts on this case, have a nice day.
Yeah it’s a pleasure and I really appreciate your time reading this.
No doubt technology has come into our lives for good. Some years back people would take days going to their fields to cultivate them but now, the work of hundred men can be done by a machine with in a few hours. This has tremendously increased productivity, making food much available for us. Unfortunately those agricultural machines and chemicals are expensive, a small scale farmer and the poor ones can't afford some of them.
That’s the setback. Hopefully things get better with time and every farmer could have access to all these tools and machines
I had no idea cassava was known as cassava in English, haha. It was my lunch. In Brazil we call it Mandioca or Macaxeira.
I really admire the lifestyle of small farmers, especially when they don't use pesticides to plant crops.
Yeah. It’s is called cassava. 😂 . I am just hearing the name in Brazil for the first time. Sound like a botanical name.
And yeah the best part of agriculture is having the produce come out naturally
As a farmer, I know you understand how these things work. Why would I go through all the struggle just to harvest something small when I can use another process and harvest more.
Technology is good for us, no doubt. But we need to consume healthy food and that’s where the problem comes in.
Yeah. It should be embraced in a way they won’t chase us harm. Technology can’t talk nor control itself. It’s we humans that are under it. So it left to us to make the choice