BC Tree Fruit Industry: Preparing for Precision Agriculture & Climate Change - Svan Lembke, Okanagan College

1. Lee Cartier, P.Ag. and Svan Lembke, Ph.D. Okanagan College School of Business

2. Funding for this research project was provided by the BC Innovation Fund and by the BC Government’s Tree Fruit Competitiveness Fund; delivered by the BC Fruit Growers’ Association and the Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC. The authors also wish to acknowledge the research support provided by staff of the British Columbia Fruit Growers’ Association and student research assistants: Nnedak Efretuei, Gurvir Khakh, and Arpan Sahsi. The Government of British Columbia is committed to working with industry partners. Opinions expressed in this document are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Government of British Columbia, the BC Fruit Gowers’ Assoc. or the Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC. Acknowledgements © 2019, Cartier & Lembke

3. • A survey of BC Tree Fruit growers identifies a gap between present grower practices and global best practices • Global best practices include mechanical and digital solutions (Precision Agriculture) that enable farmers to • Grow more efficiently and with better quality, and • Adapt to climate change (weather, pest and water challenges) • Underlying causes for this gap were found and an action plan proposed Executive Summary Doing nothing is not an option without risking the survival of the industry © 2019, Cartier & Lembke

4. • Research Objectives: • What production and information technology is available and suitable for the Tree Fruit industry in BC? • What is currently used by producers and what are the barriers of adopting more? • Focus Group with 14 growers to confirm design of questions • 40 survey questions answered by 156 growers (selected at random from the industry database at the BCFGA) in Punjabi or English Methodology: What did we want to learn? 95% confidence level of representative findings © 2019, Cartier & Lembke

5. What is Precision Agriculture (PA) and why is PA important to the BC Tree Fruit Industry? Conventional Agricultural Activities Performance Agriculture GHG Emissions Climate Change Reinforcing Loop 10% of Canada’s GHG Emissions Balancing Loop Too much or too little water Too much or too little spray Pests spreading Weather damage Decision support systems Remote sensors Smart sprayers Smart irrigation © 2019, Cartier & Lembke

7. Grower Profile: How educated are our growers? © 2019, Cartier & Lembke 7 8.7 45.6 4.7 11.4 17.4 7.4 2.0 2.7 0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0 30.0 35.0 40.0 45.0 50.0 Less than high school High school graduation or B.A from India Trades certification College diploma Bachelor's degree or university degree from India Master's degree Doctorate degree Professional degree Percent Highest Level of Education Education gives confidence and ability to adopt new technology.

8. Grower Profile: What do our Growers grow? © 2019, Cartier & Lembke 8 Apples Only 45% Cherries Only 11% Apples & Cherries 44% COMMODITY PRODUCED Pest and water management is critical to success! <10 Acres 31% 10 to 20 Acres 32% >20 Acres 37% ORCHARD SIZE GROUPS

9. Pest Management: Sprayer effectiveness © 2019, Cartier & Lembke 9 NOT VERY EFFECTIVE SOMEWHAT EFFECTIVE VERY EFFECTIVE 1.3 11.6 87.1 PRECENT SPRAYER EFFECTIVENESS ? < 5 years 19% 5-10 years 24%11-20 years 33% 21-39 years 18% > 40 years 6% Sprayer Age

10. Pest Management: Record keeping © 2019, Cartier & Lembke 10 I DON'T KEEP ANY RECORD I USE A WRITTEN JOURNAL I KEEP A DIGITAL RECORD 1.9% 89.1% 16.7% PERCENT SPRAY ACTIVITY RECORD KEEPING METHOD Required by Retailers Yes 45% No 25% Don't know 30% WILLINGNESS TO SHARE SPRAY INFORMATION

11. Water Management: How do we know when? © 2019, Cartier & Lembke 11 VISUAL INSPECTION USE A WATER TIMER USE SENSORS AND ADJUST MANUALLY USE SENSORS TO CONTROL WATER SUPPLY OTHER 81.3 38.7 14.8 2.6 16.8 PERCENT DECIDE WHEN AND HOW MUCH TO IRRIGATE What would happen if we had to pay for water?

12. Barriers to Change © 2019, Cartier & Lembke 14 62.3 16.9 13.6 46.8 61.4 8.5 15.0 53.6 61.0 14.0 5.9 45.6 44.8 41.0 13.3 43.8 EXPENSIVE COMPLICATED NO TRUST OTHER PERCENT BARRIERS TO ADOPTION Smart Sprayers Harvest Robots Remote Sensors Decision Support Systems How much?

13. • My farm is too small • I need more information • I need an economic analysis • Technology not suitable for this type of farm • Other reasons cited were specific to each type of technology: • Happy with existing sprayer; • Harvest robots damage the fruit; • Field service provides information about pests and diseases. Other Barriers Identified by Growers © 2019, Cartier & Lembke

15. What Technology is in use? © 2019, Cartier & Lembke 17 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 Phone calls Send and receive e- mail Online shopping Online banking Monitoring remote sensors Connecting to a DSS 89.1 29.5 41.9 5.4 22.5 13.2 Percent How Smartphone is Used Technology in use today!

16. Who wants to Learn more? © 2019, Cartier & Lembke 18 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 Smart Sprayers Harvest robot technology Remote sensor technology Decision Support Systems 52.9 52.6 61.5 60.0 Percent Interest in Learning More This is good!

17. Production Possibilities Frontier: Conventional Agriculture vs. Precision Agriculture 20 Use of Conventional Agriculture UseofPrecisionAgriculture Current State of the Industry Current State of Precision Agriculture Best Practices Decrease Use IncreaseAdoption Future State of PA Gap Growers must decrease use of conventional practices and increase PA practices Barriers like cost and time for education needs to be taken into consideration Can this be done by growers themselves?Government assistance needed © 2019, Cartier & Lembke

18. • Strategic Plan led by early adopters & industry leaders • Multi-year communication and training plan (funding request) • Economic impact analysis to show how innovations such as smart irrigation and smart spraying benefit the grower • Technology development that is simple and targeted at smartphone using growers (pest and water management first) Action Plan Suggestions © 2019, Cartier & Lembke Questions?

19. How can we Leap-Frog the Big Data Revolution in Agriculture for BC Tree Fruits? Svan Lembke, Ph.D. and Youry Khmelevsky, Ph.D. Okanagan College School of Business

20. Funding for this research project was provided by the BC Innovation Fund and by the BC Government’s Tree Fruit Competitiveness Fund; delivered by the BC Fruit Growers’ Association and the Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC. The Government of British Columbia is committed to working with industry partners. Opinions expressed in this document are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the Government of British Columbia, the BC Fruit Gowers’ Assoc. or the Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC. Acknowledgements © 2019, Lembke & Khmelevsky

21. • The data revolution is happening with or without us. We are starting at a disadvantage and there is a risk of only playing catch up. • Technology can offer solutions • We need to build capacity at the grower level: • Growers don’t need to become technology experts but need to be engaged • We have to pool our resources across the industry cluster to maximum effect • Collective action is urgently needed to leap-frog the data revolution • Without clear leadership the cost and time required for the industry to evolve cannot not be mobilised Executive Summary © 2019, Lembke & Khmelevsky

22. • Research Objectives: • What information is presently collected and shared by industry stakeholders? • What are the barriers to collecting and sharing this information? • How can the collection and sharing of available information be optimized within one integrated industry architecture of data storage and supporting processes? • Focus Group with industry stakeholders to confirm design of questions • In depth interviews with growers, government experts, trade associations and supporting industry (eg packing house, suppliers, consultants) Methodology: What do we want to learn? Interviews are still in progress! © 2019, Lembke & Khmelevsky

26. Remember the Education levels & Implications? 31 8.7 45.6 4.7 11.4 17.4 7.4 2.0 2.7 0.0 5.0 10.0 15.0 20.0 25.0 30.0 35.0 40.0 45.0 50.0 Less than high school High school graduation or B.A from India Trades certification College diploma Bachelor's degree or university degree from India Master's degree Doctorate degree Professional degree Percent Highest Level of Education Education gives confidence and ability to adopt new technology. © 2019, Lembke & Khmelevsky

27. Together we are strong: The BC Tree Fruit Industry Cluster Research Facilities Government Experts Trade Associations Consultants Superior analytical knowledge Facilitators Unified community © 2019, Lembke & Khmelevsky

29. What do we Have, Share & where are the Gaps? Information Topic Information Level Geography, trees, weather, water Spray, pest, production, Market, sales Level 4: Long-term decision making Level 3: Predictions for prevention & optimization Level 2: Historical data for diagnosis & analysis Level 1: Real time raw data capture Gaps, Quality issues & Duplication Integration challenges Distribution challenges © 2019, Lembke & Khmelevsky

31. Requirements: Smartphone, Sensors & Training 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 Phone calls Send and receive e- mail Online shopping Online banking Monitoring remote sensors Connecting to a DSS 89.1 29.5 41.9 5.4 22.5 13.2 Percent How Smartphone is Used Bridging a ‘relatively’ small gap! © 2019, Lembke & Khmelevsky

32. What are the Barriers to the Leap-Frog Movement? © 2019, Lembke & Khmelevsky The Coop will keep us safe! The government will bail us out! My sprayer works perfectly well. Looking at the dirt is good enough for water management. How can we ignite a sense of urgency?

33. Conclusion: Together we are strong Research Facilities Government Experts Trade Associations Consultants There is great knowledge & technology Time, money & advice © 2019, Lembke & Khmelevsky Record & adapt sensors Leadership from within the community

34. • There is a solution and it is achievable: • Industry Expertise & Technology • Education and Training Programs • Funding • Primarily we need a change in perception of what is possible • We need to engage with farmers in a meaningful way and win them over • We need to find the Early Adopters and Change Makers and they need to be committed to take on a leadership role Conclusion: Call for Action to Leap-Frog © 2019, Lembke & Khmelevsky Questions?

35. THANK YOU!

BC Tree Fruit Industry: Preparing for Precision Agriculture & Climate Change - Svan Lembke, Okanagan College

BC Tree Fruit Industry: Preparing for Precision Agriculture & Climate Change - Svan Lembke, Okanagan College

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BC Tree Fruit Industry: Preparing for Precision Agriculture & Climate Change - Svan Lembke, Okanagan College