‘Digitalizing’ pest and disease forecasting

On September 30 the Plant Protection Department, under the Ministry of Agricultural and Rural Development, and WeatherPlus Solution Joint Stock Company (WeatherPlus) signed an agreement on the development and application of 4.0 technology including weather monitoring equipment iMETOS and insect traps in plant protection. The two sides also agreed on the cooperation on crop management and monitoring in order to adapt to climate change, as a move toward sustainable agriculture.

Smart iMETOS stations monitor pests and diseases

Deputy Director of the Plant Protection Department (PPD) Nguyen Quy Duong said forecasting has played an important role in plant protection, ensuring the safety of agricultural production. However the activity has so far been mainly based on the experiences of specialized staff without smart assistants.

Previously the two parties successfully cooperated in testing smart weather stations to give pest and disease warnings, particularly concerning rice blast disease in the Northern provinces. In this cooperation, the PPD and WeatherPlus implemented a pilot model of iMETOS technology (iMETOS station) to monitor and forecast pests and diseases in the paddy fields of numerous provinces.

The iMETOS station system will evaluate the link between the emergence of harmful insects, pests and diseases such as rice blast disease, bacterial leaf bright, and brown planthopper with weather elements like temperature, humidity, wind direction and speed. On that basis, highly reliable weather forecasting information can be given to help farmers promptly take measures to prevent and control pests and diseases effectively.

Under the cooperation agreement during the five-year period from 2021 to 2025 both parties have agreed to implement several actions which include installing iMETOS station systems; carrying out projects on software development to transmit forecasting data and weather warnings; identifying pests and diseases; forecasting pest and diseases based on iMETOS stations and monitoring equipment; taking advantage of the information for crop management.

With the contents agreed, the cooperation program will be carried out in four phases.

Phase 1 from 2021 to 2022: Both parties will work with each other to establish a network of agricultural meteorological stations and subsequent data sharing. They will develop a pilot model of using iMETOS technology for monitoring, forecasting and issuing early warnings of impacts and risks.

Phase 2 from 2022-2023: Both parites will evaluate the effectiveness of the weather, pests, disease monitoring, forecasting and warning system by looking at the link between the emergence of pests and diseases with changes in weather and meteorological elements.

Phase 3 from 2023 to 2024: Both parites will create a database of crops, pests and diseases, digitalize the database, then apply AI and BigData in identifying, tracing and diagnosing pests and diseases.

Phase 4 from 2024 to 2025: Both parites will develop mechanisms to widely apply the monitoring, forecasting and early warning system in agriculture in Vietnam as well as expanding the application of the AI Doctor.

Close coordination and information sharing

Chairman of WeatherPlus To Duc Hai said digital transformation in agriculture is now attracting great attention from the government, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development as well as specialized agencies.

In particular, digital agriculture transformation based on data and smart weather monitoring system is being encouraged to develop. WeatherPlus has installed nearly 80,000 iMETOS stations worldwide which is evidence of the system’s real-world effectiveness.

Mr. Hai also expressed hope that with this cooperation the two sides will start a new chapter of applying smart technology to agriculture with a spirit of openness, responsibility and close coordination.

Through this cooperation specialized staff in agricultural sectors can improve their capacity for pest management, limiting the impact on farmers.

The cooperation agreement also clearly specified the responsibility of each party to enact the contents of the agreement as scheduled and at the highest efficiency.

The PPD is responsible for sending staff to monitor the pest and disease situation, providing warnings so that WeatherPlus can provide the information to customers or farmers; and collaborating with WeatherPlus to research and design warning software via iMETOS stations and online monitoring platforms.

WeatherPlus staff will also be trained on the basic knowledge of pest and crop management so that they can provide better services.

On the part of WeatherPlus, the company is responsible for providing all weather data, methods and protocols used to connect and exchange collected data when developing their Application Programing Interface (API) for weather forecasting in areas where the PPD may be concerned with.

WeatherPlus will coordinate with the PPD to develop an AI crop doctor along with the projects on pest and disease warning in connection with the weather, develop plans and create content for suitable weather bulletins; install and transfer iMETOS systems and put them into use in agriculture, crop protection or other industries.

The PPD asked WeatherPlus to share data, train PPD’s staff in data monitoring from the iMETOS station system; allow PPD’s staff to access weather data from iMETOS stations and the warning software; and organize conferences, seminars and forums to propagate and introduce the solutions.