Ag Tech Day Aug. 14 to show broadband capabilities in field

Someday farm work will be completed by autonomous machinery operated by a computer at a desk in an office.
While that technology is on a distant horizon for most local farmers, Ag Tech Day next week will show how Rock County’s high-speed broadband has opened doors for precision agriculture.
The event is from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 14, at Grand Prairie Events, and rural Jasper native Nic Uilk will be one of the presenters.
“We’ll talk about what agriculture might look like in the future utilizing high-speed internet to improve productivity on the farm,” he said.
Uilk, a 2003 Luverne High School graduate, is a precision ag instructor at South Dakota State University, Brookings, in the new Ag and Biosystems Engineering Department.
He said using all the data available on modern farm machinery enables farmers to apply only the amount of nitrogen and other inputs that are needed, which means less will run off into ground water.
“Technology helps us protect the environment while at the same time improving productivity to feed the world,” Uilk said.
Other presenters Wednesday will be Chip Flory, market analyst and the host of Farm Journal’s daily AgriTalk radio shows, and Scott Heibult of Luverne’s Computer Clinic who will talk about technology and surveillance options to protect farm assets.
Call Luverne Community Education at 507-283-4724 with questions. A meal is provided Wednesday for those who reserved seats.
The program is funded by a grant through the Blandin Foundation.