Phone App to Predict Risk of Crop Failure in Brazil

Brazilian farmers are using a new cell phone application in order to help them predict crop failure due to changes in weather patterns linked to climate change, Reuters reported on Wednesday.

The new app, known as Agrisupport, seeks to assist farmers in dry areas by compiling agricultural data designed to monitor the risk of crop failure in Brazilian semi-arid areas.

Changes in weather patterns linked to climate change are challenging the traditional knowledge of family farmers in Brazil, particularly those in traditionally dry areas of nine northern states, where land is used mainly to grow subsistence amounts of maize, rice, beans and cassava.

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"I think this application will help small farmers to organize themselves better. We shall know in advance which is the best time to start planting. This information can help us to save money," Charlei Sousa a family farmer from northern Brazil told Reuters.

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Used as an in-field diary, the app will record what is planted and when, how much fertilizer is used, geographical data about the soil, as well as photos and other details.

Alongside the information from farmers, researchers will rely on measurements of humidity, temperature, wind and solar radiation coming from monitoring equipment installed in nine states throughout the country.

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates that globally 33 countries, including 26 countries in Africa, are currently in need of external food assistance due to conflict, crop failures, high domestic food prices or a combination of the three. 

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