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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Auburn, Alabama » Soil Dynamics Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #365279
Research Project: Enhancing Production and Ecosystem Services of Horticultural and Agricultural Systems in the Southeastern United States

Location: Soil Dynamics Research

Title: Global trends in apps for agriculture

Author
item BARBOSA, JULIERME - Uninga University Center
item Prior, Stephen - Steve
item PEREIRA, GUILHERME - Universidade Federal Do Parana
item MOTTA, ANTONIO - Universidade Federal Do Parana
item POGGERE, GIOVANA - Universidade Federal Do Parana
item GOULARTE, GARBRIEL - Universidade Federal Do Parana

Submitted to: Multi-Science Journal
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/4/2020
Publication Date: 4/7/2020
Citation: Barbosa, J.Z., Prior, S.A., Pereira, G.Q., Motta, A., Poggere, G.C., Goularte, G.D. 2020. Global trends in apps for agriculture. Multi-Science Journal. 3(1):16-20. https://doi.org/10.33837/msj.v3i1.1095.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.33837/msj.v3i1.1095

Interpretive Summary: Computer apps for agriculture encompassed a wide range of functionalities and were developed in several countries. Although most apps were related to magazines and market information, there was a prevalence of apps on farm management, pests and diseases, precision farming, and technical assistance. Countries with the largest number of apps were USA, Brazil, and India, representing ~64% of the apps found. However, diversity and availability of paid apps was greater in USA and Brazil compared to India. Between 2015 and 2018, there was a considerable increase in the number of apps and countries that produced apps for agriculture, indicating a fast growing interest in this technology. Given this growing interest, users should be aware of newly developed apps and/or updates to existing apps. The development of apps with under-exploited features should receive more attention (e.g., those that use photo and citizen science inputs) since they can be useful in facilitating the acquisition of quantitative and qualitative information.

Technical Abstract: Although applications (apps) for mobile devices show increasing popularity in the agricultural sector, studies regarding their availability are still incipient. In the present study, a survey was conducted to assess global trends of app availability for agriculture. This survey was conducted in 2015 and 2018 in two app stores with free access (Google Play and Windows Phone); searches for the following keywords were included in the survey: agriculture, agri, and farming. In 2015 and 2018, these searches found 244 and 599 apps from 33 and 61 countries, respectively. Countries with the largest number of apps (i.e., USA, Brazil, and India) accounted for ~64% of all surveyed apps. However, diversity and availability of paid apps was greater in USA and Brazil compared to India. Although many apps were related to magazines and market information, numerous other apps were available on farm management, pests and diseases, precision farming, and technical assistance. Related apps that used photographic input and citizen science data were also found. Our study indicates that the global development of apps for agriculture is growing rapidly, with most serving informative purposes at no cost to users.