The world’s leading tractor manufacturers showcased autonomous and electric tractors, as well as robots that tow sprayers, at the Agritechnica agricultural machinery show in Germany at the end of last year.
By Amelia Genis, senior journalist at African Farming and Landbouweekblad
While the uptake of high-tech, self-operating farm machinery is growing worldwide, South African farmers are not yet ready to take the leap where it does not make economic sense.
John Deere’s autonomous 9RX tractor is already operating on grain farms in the United States, while electric tractors and robots are mostly aimed at vineyards and orchards.
Autonomous tractors operate using “stacks” or “layers” of various steering, GPS and other digital technologies, and apply machine learning to enable tractors to work without drivers.
The alternative drivetrain technologies on display at the show represent manufacturers’ efforts to reduce carbon emissions or even develop machinery with zero emissions.
Watch videos of John Deere’s autonomous tractor:
Autonomous 8R Tractor
Precision, Power & Possibility | John Deere Autonomous Tractors
Farmers in the WesFarmers in the Western Cape like to be at the forefront of technology that saves time, costs and labour and improves efficiency, but believe autonomous and electric tractors will not become a common sight on farms any time soon.
Tienie Theunissen from Caledon says they are strong supporters of using any technology, provided it can be economically justified.
“I am uncertain where the savings will be with the use of autonomous and electric tractors, especially given the massive upfront capital required. Time will tell. Let overseas farmers, who receive huge state subsidies, test it first.”
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SA still some way off
“I believe South Africa is still some way off from widespread adoption,” says Tonie Linde, a farmer and chartered accountant from Caledon. “The technology is impressive, but our infrastructure, especially for electric tractors, simply isn’t there.”
He believes autonomous tractors have potential but require comprehensive data infrastructure and connectivity that do not yet exist everywhere. The technology is also very expensive. “I think the need will grow, but we are probably still a few years away from meaningful application on farms, apart from a few large commercial enterprises that can test it.”
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‘Not in the Overberg’s small camps and slopes’
Jurie Groenewald from Rietpoel’s first reaction was: “Not in the Overberg’s smaller camps and slopes.”
Large farming operations with a lot of work to do may benefit from it and save labour, but he believes it is not suitable for smaller farms.
He has reservations about how practical it would be. “An autonomous tractor is one thing, but how will such a tractor detect problems with the implement it is pulling? I don’t think it will have as big an impact as some are hoping.”
As for electric tractors, he believes South Africa’s electricity supply and power grid, which are already under severe strain, are not ready for them.
“There aren’t enough charging stations, and how big would the batteries have to be to keep a tractor running all day? How long would the tractor stand idle while charging?”
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Logistical challenges
He believes South Africa is not ready for it. “There are a number of logistical issues to overcome before we can take on electric tractors.
“We remain a Third World country with Third World logistics and infrastructure. There are more obstacles to getting the technology off the ground than in Europe and America.”
Two Swartland farmers, Philip de Waal from Moorreesburg and Truter de Kock from Malmesbury, question what will happen to workers if tractors no longer require drivers.
De Waal believes farmers should rather try to create jobs by training workers to operate existing tractors more efficiently, which are already highly sophisticated.
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