John Deere and Yara on a mission to boost fertiliser efficiency

The way to more efficient, sustainable farming is having access to high-quality data so farmers can make better decisions and take action.

Combining Yara’s agronomic expertise and John Deere’s precision technology and advanced machinery, the new partnership will help farmers increase yields while improving nutrient use efficiency.

Thanks to advanced connectivity between the John Deere Operations CenterTM and Yara’s Atfarm digital platform, farmers will be able to get tailored crop nutrition recommendations rooted in agronomic precision, so they know that their crops are getting the right amount of nutrients where and when they are needed.

The Atfarm platform uses Yara’s N-sensor algorithm and satellite technology, enabling farmers to monitor crop growth and nitrogen uptake in their fields throughout the season. The algorithm looks for growth differences and creates variable rate application maps for N-fertilisation that farmers can access.

Through the partnership, this data can now be shared seamlessly and securely with the John Deere Operations CenterTM as a Workplan. Farmers can add field and crop information, and wirelessly synchronise their Workplan and recommendations to any machine which has a John Deere Gen4 or G5 Display.

Interpreting variable rate maps is often perceived as being complicated, but the John Deere/Yara collaboration removes the complexity, and helps farmers improve the productivity of their fields.

Field trials have shown that implementing Yara’s expert agronomic advice has resulted in up to seven percent yield increase and savings of up to 14 percent Nitrogen due to optimised fertiliser use.

The new connectivity is set to be piloted by a group of farmers in the UK, Germany, and France from spring 2024. Alongside this new collaboration, Yara and John Deere will continue to work together on further opportunities to improve nutrient use efficiency for farmers.

“Achieving the [EU] Farm to Fork Strategy’s goal of reducing nutrient losses by 50% by 2030 requires the industry to work together,” said James Craske, from VP Digital Solutions Europe at Yara International.

“Through partnering with John Deere, UK farmers will be able to use our recommendations in an easy, practical way. This contributes to more sustainable food production without adding complexity for farmers.”

Katharina Nies, marketing manager for Precision Ag at John Deere, added: “For small grain producers, crop nutrition is one of the largest opportunities for optimisation.

“We are excited to partner with Yara, as this is a unique combination of science-based fertilisation recommendations together with John Deere’s connected, highly precise, and intelligent machines. With that, farmers can achieve the highest levels of nutrient use efficiency.”