Successful Farming reports that farms are turning to technology at a time when laborers can be hard to find. In the Corn Belt, that can mean bigger rigs with more automation — though some startups are working on smaller units that drive themselves. In California, Driscoll’s is developing robotics to pick strawberries — typically the job of laborers. It’s unclear whether the detailed hand labor can be successful when mimicked by a machine. In the South, machines dig peanuts. In North Dakota, precision ag equipment used on no-till acres “puts less stress on the operator,” said farmer Mark Rohrich. Big hog operations are moving to electronic sow feeding because of a labor shortage. The new technology has to be run by someone like Aaron Schneckloth, who got a job on a farm partly because he has a college degree in agricultural systems technology along with his good work ethic.
