EU funds AI and Robotics in agriculture in Germany, France and Italy

The Agri-Tech centre in Osnabrück has a lab, workshop and test field all rolled into one

Yesterday, the German Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences announced the launch of the agrifoodTEF project. The project aims to combine the efforts of several EU countries, mainly Germany, France and Italy to implement AI and robotics in the agricultural sector.

According to a statement by the university, AI and robotics, digital and high-tech solutions are the only way to advance the agricultural sector and increase efficiency. As of 1 January 2023, the project has gained EU financial support to the tune of 50 million euros.

The money will go towards funding targeted initiatives that are supposed to cooperate with each other. The three main countries, France, Germany and Italy, have 10 million each, while a host of supporting countries, Belgium, Austria, Poland and Sweden, will each receive 5 million.  

From the lab onto the field

In Germany, the benefactors of the funding are the Osnabrück University of Applied Sciences, the German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) and the Agrotech Valley Forum. The three will work together to provide AI and robotics solutions for the agricultural sector.

One of the big advantages for the group is the University’s Agro-Technicum has a 500 square metre hall with a laboratory adjacent to an agri-test space. This means that equipment can be rolled off from the lab onto the testing field in the span of two minutes.

This would make adjustments and data collection much quicker and easier. Additionally, the available human capital in the form of trained academics in the university can provide a wide network of experts with creative solutions.

Prof. Dr. Stefan Stiene from the Faculty of Engineering and Computer Science was quoted in a press statement explaining that the University has tried and will continue to focus on offering solutions with tangible benefits to farmers.

This is why the German group is open to receiving suggestions and ideas from the private sector, combining public sector innovation with the needs of the private sector.