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On-Farm Experimentation Community Info No. 40
Sep 8, 2025
Co-editor of Sept. 2025
Thanks to my co-editor of the month, Dr André Freitas Colaço, Professor at the Departamento de Engenharia de Biossistemas, Escola Superior de Agricultura Luiz de Queiroz, Universidade de São Paulo (Brazil)
Brazil’s Embrapa Advances On-Farm Experimentation
Embrapa is at the forefront of promoting OFE in precision agriculture. Their initiatives explore variable rate applications of seeds and fertilizers and assess the environmental impacts of different management practices. Recent resources, including the books Experimentação on-farm na agricultura de precisão and Agricultura de Precisão: Um Novo Olhar na Era Digital, provide deeper insights into how OFE is reshaping sustainable agriculture. You can also explore their work through this video overview.
Spotlight on OFE at Brazil’s Precision Agriculture Conference
The 2024 Brazilian Conference of Precision Agriculture (Conbap) featured a plenary session on OFE, with insights from Fundação ABC and INTA on activities in Brazil and Argentina. The proceedings include OFE papers (pp. 50, 688), underscoring regional momentum that aligns with global OFE-C efforts.
Defining the Value of OFE for Brazilian Agriculture
Ahead of the #OFE2023 conference, Simon Cook and André Colaço led a workshop at the University of São Paulo to define the value of OFE in Brazil. Participants highlighted opportunities across farms and sugarcane systems, noting the role of consultants, cooperatives, and the challenge of limited yield data. The outcomes show how OFE services can cut costs and reduce risk. Full report on page 188 of the OFE2023 proceedings.
Lunch and learn
If you happen to sit at your desk over lunch and are browsing Ted Talks to learn something new, you may want to spend time watching the story of Sean Dengler, a farmer in Iowa engaging in on-farm experimentation to reduce their N rates. A great example of a farmer questioning current practices and engaging in OFE.
OFE in the News
Lancaster Farming reports on how Cornell’s Farmers Datalab is helping farmers turn everyday on-farm experiments into lasting learning. By pairing simple digital tools with public data, farmers can gain clearer insights from their trials and unlock more value from the billions invested globally in farmer-led experimentation.
This letter was prepared by Louis Longchamps, co-chair of the ISPA OFE Community
Should you have something to share with the Community or the Community leaders, let us know here.