After years of struggling with bad internet, a farm manager in north-west Victoria has strapped Starlink satellite internet kits to his tractors while sowing.
Key points:
- A new high speed satellite internet product can now be fitted to machinery, enabling farmers in remote areas to take full advantage of agtech
- Gleeson Farms in north west Victoria expects to save time, fertiliser and seed by using Starlink on the Move
- The technology is already being used on some emergency service vehicles
Gleeson Farms in Natya has Starlink on the Move dishes fitted to the roofs of two tractors that are working their way around the 18,000-hectare property putting in the 2023 grain crop, essentially providing a wi-fi bubble around the farm machinery.
Farm manager Scott Gladman said the data speeds had been remarkable.
"It looks really, really promising," he said.
In past years, even with internet boosters and aerials, Mr Gladman said it was challenging to use variable rate maps for seeding.
This type of mapping enables growers to alter the rate of inputs such as fertiliser and seed, recognising that the soil in each paddock is not always the same.
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