Post by Greenda

Our CEO rode a rice transplanter in northern Japan. What he saw offers three important lessons for cooperatives and agricultural technicians shaping the future of farming. Last month, Chadi Nemr travelled to the Akita rice belt, speaking with farmers, joining them during planting, and seeing how Japan’s cooperative system helps agricultural teams respond to labour shortages, pest pressure, and an ageing farming population. Three things stood out: 1️⃣ Regional alerts are most valuable when followed by local verification Cooperatives share regional pest alerts, giving farmers and technicians an early indication of emerging risks. Farmers then inspect their own fields and act only when they find evidence of the pest. The cooperative provides the wider intelligence. The final decision is based on what is actually happening in each field. 2️⃣ Technology must reduce the workload The rice transplanter Chadi rode plants seedlings and applies crop protection in the same pass, removing the need for an additional trip through the field The same principle applied to drones, GPS-guided machinery, and other tools: Does it help farmers and technicians save time and reduce costs? Not whether it is new. Not whether it sounds innovative. Whether it makes daily agricultural work easier and more effective. 3️⃣ Trust scales through cooperatives and technicians Farmers voluntarily report their inputs, receive shared alerts, and rely on their cooperative for agronomic and business advice. The JA cooperative acts as the trusted layer connecting regional knowledge, technical expertise, technology, and decisions in the field. This strongly reflects how we believe agricultural technology should scale in Spain: by strengthening the cooperatives and technicians farmers already know and trust. Around seven in ten of Japan’s core farmers are aged 65 or older. Yet what we saw was not simply a story of decline. It was a practical blueprint for helping cooperatives and technicians support more farmers, with greater precision, restraint, and trust. How can technology help cooperatives and agricultural technicians deliver better support across more farms? Read the full story in comment section👇 #AgTech #Agriculture #CropProtection #AgriculturalCooperatives #AgriculturalTechnicians