MoniCa Operational Group: Agro-monitoring system for extensive herbaceous crops in Cadiz based on remote sensing, IoT, and artificial intelligence

The MoniCa project will contribute to meeting the challenge of sustainable agriculture by developing operational services capable of monitoring the status of all extensive herbaceous crops in the province, facilitating their management for farmers. These crop monitoring and automation systems have a direct impact on the productivity and sustainability of end users, improving crop production and quality and enabling efficient management of natural resources.

Another added benefit of monitoring systems is that they help reduce the use of environmentally polluting products, such as fertilizers and plant protection products.

From an economic point of view, the project aims to contribute to:

• Reducing sampling costs by around 20%.
• Modernization and more efficient use of resources, saving up to 20% on available treatments, reducing their impact on the soil and the environment.
• Saving 15% on the cost of applying fertilizers by evaluating different types of selective fertilizers.
• The expected impacts of the project on extensive herbaceous crops in Cádiz are narrowing the gap between potential and actual production, improving economic benefits, and reducing the environmental impact caused by excessive water and fertilizer use.

The project's achievements will have a multiplier effect throughout the agricultural and environmental sectors.