Digitalization on tea field: reducing costs thanks to accurate forecast

Experts emphasize the importance of "prevention is better than cure." By implementing appropriate measures prior to pest and disease outbreaks, producers can reduce their reliance on pesticides and even replace them with alternative biological and organic solutions.

The advantages are more significant when foreseen in advance

Thai Nguyen province has extensively implemented the iMetos smart weather station in crop production and tea cultivation. iMetos station assists farmers by calculating planting and harvesting schedules, providing weather forecasts, and offering early insect warnings.

Even in low-light conditions, the iMetos smart weather monitoring station provides stable electricity to the equipment by operating on solar power. The system has the ability to forecast and alert for weather events 1-6 days in advance with an accuracy of 70-80%, and 24-hour forecasts can achieve 90-100% accuracy. It also forecasts the duration and quantity of rainfall from the beginning to the end, issues alerts for excessive rainfall, and monitors extreme temperatures, including heat, cold, frost, and severe cold, within a 5 to 25 km radius. Mobile networks and the internet can transmit weather warnings to users every 10 to 60 minutes.

The initiative has also created a pest warning and forecasting model for tea plants, which is designed to combat pests such as green tea leafhoppers and tea tortrix. To facilitate the application of monitoring and weather forecasting data in production management and direction, local officials have participated in training sessions that instruct them on how to access and utilize the data.

An iMetos station for the city of Song Cong (Thai Nguyen) is located at the Cao Son Tea Cooperative in Khe Lim village, Binh Son commune. Director of Cao Son Tea Cooperative Pham Van Tien stated, "We appear to be the beneficiaries of the station's installation; we have not encountered any pest problems."

The Cao Son Tea Cooperative has successfully attained VietGAP standards for all 20 hectares of its tea, and it is in the process of transitioning to organic farming. By providing the community with early forecasts of weather and vermin, the monitoring station assists the cooperative in properly planning production.

"Three of our cooperative's products obtain a 4-star OCOP rating. An export market is necessary to achieve a 5-star rating. In order to attain the approval of demanding nations, we must satisfy pesticide residue standards. Therefore, our objective is to transition to organic production in order to regulate pesticide residues, and early insect forecasting is instrumental in this process," stated Pham Van Tien, who outlined the cooperative's strategy for move.

Precise predictions that are up to the minute 

Mr. To Van Khiem, Director of the Khe Coc Safe Tea Cooperative, shared that he only trusted the rain forecast from the iMetos smart station during the stormy weather this past September because it was accurate to the minute. The cooperative is the host of the iMetos smart weather monitoring station in Phu Luong district (Thai Nguyen). 

Traditional weather forecasting applications typically notify producers of the likelihood of rain on a specific day; however, they are unable to provide precise hourly or minute-by-minute accuracy, particularly at the district level. For instance, farmers exclusively harvest tea in the morning when it is desiccated. They can prevent labor waste by anticipating that the afternoon will be rainy and the morning will be sunny. 

"Farmers do not merely monitor the weather to determine whether to wear a raincoat; they require information to schedule harvests, fertilization, and other duties for their crops." "In agriculture, the growth efficiency of crops and cultivation plans can be significantly impacted by an unexpected rain shower if it is not anticipated," Mr. Khiem explained. 

The Director of the Khe Coc Safe Tea Cooperative recommended that the cooperative establish groups on platforms such as Zalo and Facebook to enhance the efficiency of the smart weather station. This would enable the sharing of information and reminders, thereby enabling local farmers to readily access forecasts. Due to their habits, many farmers are still not accustomed to routinely checking mobile apps.