We would like to cultivate a culture of discussion

...with our agriconBLOG

agriconBLOG

03.02.2020 - Maraike Mirau

The AgRevolutionary

For most people, farmland differs only by its colour. Sometimes it is green, full of young shoots or completely yellow and covered with rape or brown when the barley is about to be harvested. With entrepreneur Peer Leithold it is different. For the 55-year-old Saxon, every square meter of a field is unique due to the interplay of climate, soil type and plants.

The son of a farmer initially dreamed of running a large agricultural production cooperative (LPG). However, with German reunification the industry changed. Leithold had to rethink and discovered GPS technology for himself. Together with five partners, he founded the company Agricon in 1997 and developed a software for targeted plant cultivation, precision farming.

Today, the team produces sensors that can be used for precision farming. Soil analyses are used to collect information on the growth conditions in a field. The data obtained is converted into commands by an algorithm and programmed into the agricultural machines. The machines then know where and how much to fertilize. "Our method ensures that only as much fertilizer, seed and pesticide is used as necessary," explains Leithold. Farmers thus save around twelve percent nitrogen fertilizer. They pay 850 euros a year to Agricon. In addition, there is a basic lump sum of 350 euros. Leithold believes that digitalisation is the right answer to the current criticism of conventional agriculture, too many pesticides or too little species protection.

 

22 years ago, Peer Leithold founded the company Agricon and, together with his team, developed a software for precision farming: agriPORT.

Holistic solution approach

While the IT specialist initially only offered sensors and software for individual areas such as plant fertilisation, he has now also developed solutions for the entire field work and farm management. Farmers can now display and manage the entire operation on screen. Leithold was able to test his new systems on fields of friends and customers. Convincing the farmers to change over was not easy at first. The entrepreneur says: "With our system we have challenged common production methods."

After all, 3000 farmers from all over Europe now use the company's software. The cooperation with a successful agricultural machinery manufacturer, the US company John Deere, has paid off. Two years ago, the billion dollar company approached Leithold. John Deere now offers its machines together with Agricon technology. "If customers at the agricultural machinery dealer still have questions and requests in the field of precision farming or would like to digitalize their farm, they are referred to us," says Leithold.

 

The N-Sensor on the tractor measures the nitrogen uptake of the plants in the field. An algorithm then calculates in real time how much nitrogen fertiliser the spreader needs to apply to the subfield.

Cooperation with John Deere

After all, 3,000 farmers from all over Europe now use the company's software. The cooperation with a successful agricultural machinery manufacturer, the US company John Deere, has paid off. Two years ago, the billion-euro company approached Leithold. John Deere now offers its machines together with Agricon technology. "If customers at the agricultural machinery dealer still have questions and requests in the field of precision farming or would like to digitalize their farm, they are referred to us," says Leithold.

He considers his digital offer a decisive competitive advantage... read more on Focus.de.

 

 

Write the first comment on this article

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked with *.

Back to listview

Please select your language

We have noticed that you are visiting the website with a different language. Please select your preferred language.