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A review on the practice of big data analysis in agriculture

Published: 01 December 2017 Publication History

Abstract

Survey on the practice of big data analysis in agriculture.Detailed review of 34 high-impact relevant research studies.Discussion on the status and potential of big data analysis in agriculture.Open problems and challenges, barriers for wider adoption and use.Ways to overcome barriers and potential future applications in agriculture. To tackle the increasing challenges of agricultural production, the complex agricultural ecosystems need to be better understood. This can happen by means of modern digital technologies that monitor continuously the physical environment, producing large quantities of data in an unprecedented pace. The analysis of this (big) data would enable farmers and companies to extract value from it, improving their productivity. Although big data analysis is leading to advances in various industries, it has not yet been widely applied in agriculture. The objective of this paper is to perform a review on current studies and research works in agriculture which employ the recent practice of big data analysis, in order to solve various relevant problems. Thirty-four different studies are presented, examining the problem they address, the proposed solution, tools, algorithms and data used, nature and dimensions of big data employed, scale of use as well as overall impact. Concluding, our review highlights the large opportunities of big data analysis in agriculture towards smarter farming, showing that the availability of hardware and software, techniques and methods for big data analysis, as well as the increasing openness of big data sources, shall encourage more academic research, public sector initiatives and business ventures in the agricultural sector. This practice is still at an early development stage and many barriers need to be overcome.

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    cover image Computers and Electronics in Agriculture
    Computers and Electronics in Agriculture  Volume 143, Issue C
    December 2017
    325 pages

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    Elsevier Science Publishers B. V.

    Netherlands

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    Published: 01 December 2017

    Author Tags

    1. Agriculture
    2. Big data analysis
    3. Smart Farming
    4. Survey

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