Description
COURSE OVERVIEW
Technology is impacting every aspect of our modern lives, and agriculture is no exception. Technological advancements are today integral to attaining sustainability goals in agricultural supply chains. Emerging technologies such as Satellite and GPS technologies, IoT sensors, smart systems, drones, automation, block chain, big data, machine learning and artificial intelligence, to list a few are technologies being employed to transform various agricultural sectors include crop farming, livestock farming and fish farming.
The use of such emerging technologies have led to new ways of farming including Precision Agriculture, indoor vertical farming, hydroponics farming, Livestock Farming Technology, Laser Scarecrows, Farm Automation and Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) Technology among others.
These new ways of farming enabled by emerging technologies leads to effective resource utilisation in the agriculture supply chain. On the one hand, they reduce the use of harmful agrochemicals and, on the other, they help conserve non-renewable resources. They also help agriculturists to prepare days in advance for unseasonal or extreme weather events, thereby reducing crop losses during such events. Technologies such as blockchains also provide a means for food safety through greater transparency. Data from satellite images, sensors, and IoT devices facilitate smarter decisions to optimise farm operations by using as minimal resources as possible and mitigates risks to realize optimal crop yields. Traceability solutions make agriculture supply chains more transparent and provide stakeholders with increased control over operations and quality compliance. It enables them to identify and address issues, such as food loss or wastage, and recognize opportunities to make processes cost-effective. They also help reduce the stakeholders’ response time to food crises, thus saving up to millions of dollars in losses. Traceability to source, along with accurate certification and product labelling, provides agri-enterprises with a competitive edge that helps improve their access to local and international markets and leads to better price realization for the smallholder farmers.
It is against this back drop that this course seeks to look at the emerging technologies being used in agriculture to transform crop farming, livestock farming and fish farming.
COURSE OBJECTIVE(S)
The objectives of this course are to:
- To examine the contemporary role of emerging technologies in agricultural supply chains.
- To explore the various emerging technologies being used in agricultural supply chains.
- To examine the use of blockchain technology in agricultural supply chains.
- To examine the use of big data and artificial intelligence in agricultural supply chains.
- To examine the use of IoT in agricultural supply chains.
- To examine the use of drones and robots in agricultural supply chains.
- To examine the use of digitization through automation agricultural supply chains.
LEARNING OUTCOMES
On completion of the Emerging Technologies in Agricultural Supply Chain Management course students should be able to:
- Explain the role of emerging technologies in agricultural supply chains of today.
- Identify various emerging technologies being used in agricultural supply chains.
- Explain how blockchain technology is being used in agricultural supply chains.
- Explain how big data and artificial intelligence are being used in agricultural supply chains.
- Explain how IoT is being used in agricultural supply chains.
- Explain how drones and robots are being used in agricultural supply chains.
- Explain how digitization through automation are being used in agricultural supply chains.
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