Post by Urban Ag News

Dutch horticulture industry worries that China will surpass in food tech. The Hague wants to accelerate robotization in agriculture and horticulture but wants to do without extra money. Interesting developments in the Netherlands-continues to show the differences between Dutch and Americans when it comes to government support and expectations. The Dutch government (The Hague) aims to accelerate robotization and digitalization in the agriculture and horticulture sectors to keep the industry globally competitive, innovative, and sustainable, but is doing so without allocating additional structural public funding. While one-time budgets from existing programs—such as the EIP subsidy—are being increased to support collaborations between farmers and technology developers in bringing agricultural robots to market, the agricultural and tech sectors are sounding the alarm. Through the 'Manifesto for Robotization & Innovation,' industry organizations like LTO Nederland emphasize that a true acceleration and a viable solution to societal challenges, such as severe labor shortages and sustainability demands, are impossible without structural government investment, as the scope of the innovation is too massive to be left solely to the private market. https://lnkd.in/gFiUQGq7