FARMSTAR - precision farming
Sustainable farming with satellites

Farming is today harnessing the power of satellites and space technologies to support sustainable crop production systems.

These technologies provide precise, field-level information to aid good environmental, economic and social stewardship.

 FARMSTAR is a service designed for farmers looking to manage their land and the environment responsibly through closer control of inputs and irrigation.

The objective of FARMSTAR is to provide data products for farmers and organizations to help them achieve optimal management of crop production.
 
Spot Image supplies satellite imagery from which Infoterra and Arvalis produce crop growth status and recommendation maps. The service was marketed commercially for the first time in 2002, after a 6-year development and validation effort.

 
 - Farmers purchase a subscription through their distributor covering the fields they want to monitor. They then supply all the necessary details—location, crop, sowing date, soil depth, irrigation and so on—for Infoterra to compile a field database.

- Satellite imagery is then acquired. The satellites’ sensors, imaging footprints and revisit capability allow crop growth to be tracked regularly.

- Once imagery has been collected, Infoterra derives biophysical parameters that indicate crop status and works with Arvalis to compile status, recommendation and advice maps.

- The ability to map intra-field variations at any point means that inputs can be targeted where needed to uniform areas of a field.

- Time savings: the ability to manage crops remotely allows farmers to concentrate scouting on suspect areas of a field and thus reduces the need to collect samples.

- Increased profitability: regular savings—as much as €20 to €50/ha for wheat crops—are achieved on inputs of nitrogen and plant growth regulators (applied to reduce lodging).

- Enhanced yields and quality (protein content in wheat, oil content in oilseed rape). See the many testimonials (http://www1.farmstar-conseil.fr/presse-temoignage.html ) from satisfied FARMSTAR customers.
 
- Safeguarding the environment through more eco-friendly farming practices, in compliance with the requirements of the new Common Agricultural Policy (CAP): FARMSTAR has obtained official approval from the French Ministry of Agriculture and Chambers of Agriculture and is a recognized management tool for applying local nitrate directives.

- For cooperatives, FARMSTAR provides closer insight into fields within their remit.

> Increase acreages monitored in France, currently 420,000 hectares.

> To help operators establish and develop this market, Spot Image will continue to enhance its multisatellite portfolio and satellite tasking and rapid data delivery services.