Lincolnshire farmers aiming to lead AI revolution in UK agriculture

Lincolnshire farmers are working with Government to ensure the county remains a leader in adopting artificial intelligence and new technology in food production.

Industry leaders from across the county met with a representative from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) at the latest Greater Lincolnshire Forum for Agriculture and Horticulture.

The meeting focused on how the sector can attract new talent, close training gaps, and give existing workers the skills they need to make the most of AI and robotics.

Lincolnshire’s farming and food sector employs more than 75,000 people and is a major part of the county’s economy.

Forum Chair and sixth-generation Spalding farmer Matt Riddington believes big changes are coming.

"I think it would be naive to think that some roles aren't going to be replaced by this technology coming forward," he said.

"But it's very much more a case of adapting and implementing that technology into current workforces to understand that how to increase productivity.

"There's over a quintillion data points that are collected in agriculture just on an annual basis.

"So as individuals, we're completely unable to process all of that information at once. But what we do have with AI is potentially the facility to utilize some of the information points that we do gather," added Matt.

While the industry faces national challenges such as an ageing workforce and specialist skills shortages, local leaders say Lincolnshire is bucking the trend with higher productivity and strong support from the University of Lincoln and Bishop Grosseteste University.

"There is absolutely no reason why Lincolnshire can't be front runners and forebearers for the future of agricultural development," said Matt.

"We've got two fantastic universities that are really driving change and driving that agricultural technology agenda forward."