It’s Time to Embrace Technology on Your Farm Operation

More and more I’m finding technology to be a beautiful thing. It can even save your life — or mine — but more on that in a moment.

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Last month I had the pleasure of attending the Ag Innovation Showcase at the University of California, Davis. The event has been held in St. Louis, MO, for nine years, but it was the first time it was held in California, and the first time it had more of a fruit and vegetable component. From drone-based scouting of vineyards to biotechnology, including the use of bees as delivery agents for pest biocontrol, it was fascinating. It will be held again next year at UC Davis, and I strongly urge you to attend.

I’ve been taking a deep dive into agricultural technology because I think it’s going to have a profound impact on your future. Our company does too. Three years ago Meister Media Worldwide launched the BiocontrolsSM USA West Conference & Expo, and this fall we will host the first BiocontrolsSM USA East event in Orlando, FL.

More recently, we are focusing on developments in precision technology, with a particular focus on how fruit and vegetable growers are going to benefit from new tech like robotics, sensors, data, and how all of it will work together to help you make decisions.

The charter for this new initiative is to build on our long heritage with Meister Media’s PrecisionAg® magazine brand, capitalize on significant new emerging trends, and build our global precision leadership with targeted products and services for major agricultural market segments around the world. This is a dramatic expression of our company’s mission “to be the trusted partner empowering the business of global agriculture to grow a better world,” as precision agriculture will be a catalyst for global agriculture to meet the challenge of feeding the expanding world population.

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Lately I’ve been reading all the information about new technology I can get my hands on, which is partly why my wife sent me a story about an app called Pulse Point that helped save the life of a Spokane, WA, baby.

When the baby started turning blue, a store clerk called 911, and a mechanic with CPR training — working on a car two blocks away — who had the app on his phone came running to the rescue.

I wish more people would install the app and take a course in CPR so they could save a life — as did San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Deputy Dave Konecny, or “Angel Dave” as he’s referred to in the Eddy household.

You might have noticed my editorial has been missing the past few months. That’s because on Saturday, March 11, I was walking my dog to my office when, with zero warning, I had a massive heart attack. Angel Dave saw me drop, thank God, because no one else in the crowd that quickly formed around me knew CPR.

It took 10 minutes for the ambulance to arrive — my wife actually arrived first, as my still-leashed dog had run the ¾ of a mile home, followed by a couple in a car and a few boys on bikes — and my cardiologist says without question, if it weren’t for Angel Dave, I wouldn’t have made it.

I feel perfectly fine these days. Better than ever as I’ve lost weight and am working out on a far more regular basis. Another positive result — I’ve got a new friend in a fine man, Angel Dave. Deepest thanks to all those who reached out.

Upshot: Embrace technology. It will be critical to the success of your business. And who knows, it might help you save a life.

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