Argentine scientific development of Agriculture 4.0. State of the art

Abstract

Agriculture 4.0 system includes the use of the internet of things, cloud storage and computing, massive data analysis, artificial intelligence (AI), decision support systems and blockchain (BLC). The contribution of the Argentine science and technology institutions to the knowledge and development of Agriculture 4.0 in the Country has not been revised yet. In parallel, there is a lack of information regarding the BLC insertion in the Argentine agricultural sector. This review aims at covering these information gaps. Based on retrieved publications (58), core Agriculture 4.0 technologies studied in Argentina are data analysis, sensors and robotics, and IoT. No article on BLC applied to agriculture was retrieved. National public institutions are main contributors to the Agriculture 4.0 knowledge. The distribution of studies on Agriculture 4.0 core technologies among regions is uneven. BLC adoption in Argentina is incipient, mainly oriented towards traceability and the certification of primary agricultural products. This review exposes some elements which could drive the expansion of Agriculture 4.0 in Argentina: the existence of active research groups addressing innovation in these technologies, companies offering Agriculture 4.0-related supplies and services, and a coordinated initiative by the State and private sectors for implementing a public BLC with multiple applications.