The competition was addressed to technology companies developing practical applications of artificial intelligence in agriculture and across the agri-food value chain. The challenge focused on creating an innovative AI solution that transforms soil and satellite data into precise fertilization decisions, enabling higher agricultural profitability while simultaneously reducing costs and environmental impact.
This recognition confirms Agri Solutions’ position as a provider of mature AI solutions for precision agriculture and highlights the growing role of the FarmCloud platform as a data and collaboration infrastructure connecting farmers, advisors, and supply chain stakeholders.
AI Challenge by Grupo AN and EIT Food – its significance for agriculture
The AI Challenge was defined by Grupo AN as a response to one of the key challenges of modern agriculture: optimizing fertilization while reducing costs and environmental impact. Traditional fertilization approaches, based on averaged application rates, do not account for soil variability, weather conditions, or the actual needs of crops.
The goal of the challenge was to develop a solution that:
- uses artificial intelligence to analyse soil and satellite data,
- enables dynamic, variable-rate fertilization at the field-zone level,
- supports farmers and producer groups in data-driven decision-making,
- aligns with the goals of sustainable agriculture and European environmental regulations.
For EIT Food and Grupo AN, this project is strategic, as it connects technological innovation with real production processes at scale.
Agri Solutions’ solution – AI for precision fertilization
The winning Agri Solutions solution is based on AI models that analyse and combine:
- soil test results (nutrient levels, pH, structure),
- NDVI satellite data and multispectral imagery,
- historical data on yields and agronomic operations,
- weather and seasonal conditions.
Based on this data, the system generates precise fertilization recommendations tailored to specific field zones and the current stage of crop development. Recommendations are delivered as application maps (including ISO-XML and SHP formats), ready to be used by agricultural machinery supporting variable-rate application.
FarmCloud and FarmPortal as the foundation for deployment
The solution presented in the AI Challenge is a natural extension of functionalities already developed within the FarmCloud ecosystem. The FarmPortal application, which is part of FarmCloud, has been supporting farmers and advisors in day-to-day production management for years.
FarmPortal enables, among others:
- field and crop record management,
- planning and registration of agronomic operations,
- execution of soil testing and analysis of results,
- delineation of productivity zones,
- creation of variable-rate fertilization and application maps.
By integrating these functionalities with AI algorithms, precision agriculture evolves from a single tool into a coherent, data-driven decision-making process.
Precision agriculture, soil testing, and variable-rate fertilization
A key element of the solution is the combination of regular soil testing with spatial field analysis. The FarmPortal system supports intelligent placement of soil sampling points, archiving of results, and comparison over time.
This enables:
- precise determination of fertilization requirements,
- reduction of nutrient losses,
- improvement of soil health and its microbiome,
- increased economic efficiency of production.
Variable-rate fertilizer application, driven by data and AI, directly translates into cost reductions and lower environmental pressure.
FoodPass – advisory services, quality, and cost optimization within Grupo AN
An important element of the deployment for Grupo AN is the use of the FoodPass application integrated with FarmPortal, which enables collaboration with farmers associated within the producer group.
With FoodPass, Grupo AN can:
- provide remote and on-site agronomic advisory services,
- monitor production quality at the farm level,
- analyse fertilizer use and compliance with recommendations,
- identify areas of excessive costs and reduce them,
- standardise production practices across the entire group.
The integration of FoodPass with FarmPortal and FarmCloud creates end-to-end data continuity “from field to processing”, supporting both operational and strategic decision-making.
The importance of the solution for Grupo AN’s supply chain
For Grupo AN, deploying the Agri Solutions solution is of key importance across the entire supply chain:
- it increases predictability of raw material quality and volume,
- improves transparency of agricultural production,
- supports the achievement of ESG and sustainability goals,
- reduces production costs for farmers, strengthening their competitiveness,
- enables scaling of best practices across the entire producer group.
In this model, FarmCloud becomes a platform for collaboration and data exchange between farmers, advisors, and processors, while AI serves as a practical tool for process optimization. This represents the implementation of a multi-actor business model (Multi Actor System).
Winning the AI Challenge organised by Grupo AN and EIT Food marks another step in the development of Agri Solutions as a technology partner for modern, precision-driven, and sustainable agriculture, as well as the broader agri-food sector.
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