New automated/robotic ag technologies are coming out all the time. Ever wonder how they function in the “real world” and whether they are cost effective? Western Growers recently released a case study report on the economic impact of Stout Industrial Technology, Inc.’s Smart Cultivator on overall weeding costs. The study tracked expenses, productivity, and labor savings of the machine operating over one year on five types of lettuce crops and 2,700 acres at Triangle Farms in Salinas, CA. It is a well done, detailed study with machine costs and labor savings broken down by crop type and acreage. It’s an easy read and worth the time for those interested in the economic and overall feasibility of automated mechanical weeding. Check it out here or by clicking the image below. I don’t want to be a spoiler, but I was surprised to learn that costs for hand weeding lettuce in Salinas, CA were so high - $525/acre (conventional) and $750/acre (organic) and that in these conditions, the return on the $330K investment for the machine was less than one year when used on 2,700 acres.

Stay tuned. Western Growers plans to release four more automation technology case study reports within the next year. Upcoming reports include grower case studies experiences with the automated weeding machine from Ecorobotix; and with autonomous ag platforms from Burro, GUSS Automation, and Bluewhite. Their first report, which examined the economics of Carbon Robotics’ Laser Weeder at the commercial scale, can be found here.

Fig. 1. Western Growers case study report on the economic impact of Stout Industrial
Technology, Inc.’s weeding machine on weeding costs in lettuce on 2,700 acres at
Triangle Farms, Salinas, CA. Click here or on the figure to view. (Photo credit: The
Western Growers Centerfor Innovation & Technology)