‘Know the Enemy and Know Yourself’ Consulting Using AI Boosted Farm Income by 25.9%

[Korea Agricultural Technology News = Reporter Lee Hyun-woo] It has been found that ‘know the enemy and know yourself’ consulting, which uses artificial intelligence (AI) to diagnose the management status of farms and prescribe customized solutions, is playing a significant role in raising farm income, leading to a 25.9% increase in agricultural income. The Rural Development Administration (Administrator Lee Seung-don) announced an analysis of agricultural income trends for 33 farms whose cropping season had ended, out of the ‘AI-based specialized management consulting’ pilot project conducted for 55 farms nationwide over the past year.

According to the RDA’s analysis, the overall average agricultural income of the surveyed farms increased by 25.9% compared to before, and based on 10 ares (a) for one cropping season, income rose by about 1.62 million won on average.

This performance is interpreted as the result of the precise analysis carried out by the ‘AI-based Management Innovation Consulting Support Team,’ launched last year. For eight months from April to November last year, the support team comprehensively analyzed factors that directly affect profitability, such as price appropriateness, hired labor costs, pest and disease control, and conventional fertilization, based on the basic information of the target farms. It then compared them with advanced, high-income farms using management data learned by AI and presented customized strategies for increasing income.

Satisfaction in the field was also high. Mr. A, who grows blueberries in Chungju, North Chungcheong Province, had frozen prices for five years out of concern that regular customers might leave, but after accepting AI-provided price comparisons with other farms and a recommendation for gradual increases, he saw total revenue rise by 1.08 million won.

Mr. B, a pear grower in Naju, South Jeolla Province, had also been struggling with pear scab. Through consulting, he confirmed that his pesticide costs were lower than those of other farms and focused on disease control. As a result, although pesticide costs rose slightly, yield per 10 ares increased by 687 kg, resulting in an income gain of 1.08 million won.

In particular, among the 33 farms analyzed, a total of 21 were confirmed to have increased income. The agricultural income of these farms jumped by an average of 87.4% (5.23 million won). By type, there were 6 farms that reduced operating costs and increased total revenue (average income up 34.7%), and 15 farms where operating costs increased but total revenue rose due to higher yields and other factors (average income up 128.0%). The RDA plans to conduct a detailed analysis in July of the causes in some farms that did not see income growth from this consulting and prepare improvement measures.

Choi Kwang-ho, Director General of the RDA’s Bureau of Technology Cooperation, emphasized, “As internal and external conditions such as climate change and labor shortages become more uncertain, the share of agricultural income is trending downward,” adding, “We will actively support the establishment of AI-based specialized management consulting in the field so that farmers themselves can accurately diagnose their management status and increase income.”

Meanwhile, the Rural Development Administration launched ‘AI-RISE,’ a smart agriculture AI working group, to break down barriers among core agricultural AI tasks that had been pursued separately and create synergy. On May 27, the RDA held a launch ceremony at the Department of Agricultural Engineering with about 100 participants from industry, academia, and research in the agricultural AI field, marking the start of full-scale operations.

‘AI-RISE’ is an organization formed to organically integrate 11 tasks under the new project, ‘Development of an AI-based Crop Monitoring and Diagnosis Platform,’ which the RDA will pursue from this year through 2030. Going forward, it will be divided into four subcommittees—platform, protected horticulture, food crops, and fruit trees—and plans to produce tangible results through regular consultations twice a year. Kim Gyeong-ran, head of the RDA’s Department of Agricultural Engineering, said, “The key goal is to create synergy by connecting the data and algorithms of agricultural AI tasks that had previously been pursued individually,” adding, “We will devote all our efforts to completing a practical platform that can be immediately felt in the agricultural field.”