Greater Zurich puts innovative agrotech to the test

Agricultural innovations are being tested and improved in the Greater Zurich Area. The Schaffhausen-based firm GVS Agrar and the US agricultural machinery manufacturer AGCO, whose European headquarters are located in Neuhausen, have teamed up for a recent series of experiments to test the precision planter developed by AGCO for maize and sugar beet cultivation. To this end, the companies are working in conjunction with local farmers. These trials are delivering key insights for both companies with regard to the further development process.

“Such joint trials not only strengthen local agriculture for the future and thereby increase its competitiveness, but also allow us as a company to develop innovations more quickly”, comments Nicolas Helmstetter, GVS Agrar Project Manager for Future Farming Projects, in a press release issued by the Economic Promotion of Schaffhausen.

Together with interested companies and the cantonal Agricultural Agency, the Economic Promotion of Schaffhausen is planning to conduct a further series of joint field tests with local. These joint practical tests centered on the issue of agriculture of the future are designed to strengthen the Canton of Schaffhausen as a center of excellence for digital agriculture. Additionally, plans for an intensified cooperation with Agroscope, the federal Swiss research center for agriculture, food, and the environment, are currently being advanced.