Stout launches smart rate fertilizer: working on precision fertilization
Stout launches the smart rate fertilizer, a solution set to transform the way commercial farmers approach fertilization. This technology introduces an approach to crop fertilization, focusing on precision, cost effectiveness and sustainability.
The Stout smart rate fertilizer can deliver tailored nutrient application to the needs of individual plants – a concept Stout calls ‘Farming to the Individual Plant’. This technology empowers farmers to optimize fertilization practices, ensuring up to 30% reduction in material use while driving uniformity across every field. By applying nutrients only where and when they are needed, the smart rate fertilizer helps farmers minimize material use, contributing to more sustainable and cost-effective farming practices.
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Recognition cameras
The system is to fertilise individual plants using the same plant recognition cameras used for hoeing. The technology is able to tune the amount of fertiliser to the size of the plants. An 88 inches wide smart cultivator with the fertilising system on it costs $ 300,000. The 178 inches wide version costs $ 520,000. There currently are 75 smart cultivators in operation.
“Our goal with the smart rate fertilizer is to provide a tool that not only enhances the efficiency of farming operations but also supports long-term sustainability,” said Ryan Mazzuca, Director of Business Development. “Materials like fertilizer make up more than 50% of the overall cultural costs in agricultural production, and we plan to reduce that burden, while increasing yield, a win-win for all.”
The Stout smart rate fertilizer is now an available implement that can be added to the company’s smart cultivator.
