The future of food includes self-driving tractors, precision agriculture, robots, AI, and IoT

The world's population is expected to reach over 9 billion by the year 2050. This poses a unique situation for farmers as they attempt to find viable methods for producing enough food to feed everyone. Luckily, technology is growing almost as fast as the human race and can hopefully help prevent a food shortage crisis. The following farms are using IoT, AI, precision farming, and other modern methods to streamline operations and increase crop yield.

This gallery was originally published on TechRepublic.

John Deere test farm manager Marcus Hall prepares for a field test in Bondurant, IA. (Caption by Natalie Gagliordi)

Read the full cover story by Natalie Gagliordi: How self-driving tractors, AI, and precision agriculture will save us from the impending food crisis

Marcus Hall checks system connectivity on one of John Deere's newest row crop tractors. (Caption by Natalie Gagliordi)

Read the full cover story by Natalie Gagliordi: How self-driving tractors, AI, and precision agriculture will save us from the impending food crisis

John Deere performs field tests on its newest planters and sprayers at its test farm in Bondurant, IA. (Caption by Natalie Gagliordi)

Read the full cover story by Natalie Gagliordi: How self-driving tractors, AI, and precision agriculture will save us from the impending food crisis

The backend of John Deere's row crop tractor is prepared for planting. (Caption by Natalie Gagliordi)

Read the full cover story by Natalie Gagliordi: How self-driving tractors, AI, and precision agriculture will save us from the impending food crisis

Sensors on a John Deere row crop tractor trigger an error alert on an in-cab screen when a part of the system malfunctions. (Caption by Natalie Gagliordi)

Read the full cover story by Natalie Gagliordi: How self-driving tractors, AI, and precision agriculture will save us from the impending food crisis

With advanced GPS, a tractor operator can tell which rows have been planted to avoid overlap. (Caption by Natalie Gagliordi)

Read the full cover story by Natalie Gagliordi: How self-driving tractors, AI, and precision agriculture will save us from the impending food crisis

The massive arms of a John Deere crop sprayer unfold like a transformer. (Caption by Natalie Gagliordi)

Read the full cover story by Natalie Gagliordi: How self-driving tractors, AI, and precision agriculture will save us from the impending food crisis

Small Robot Company and HandsFree Hectare, two UK-based projects via Harper Adams University, are using methods such as IoT, autonomous robotics, modern photography methods, and AI to take precision agriculture to the next level; through these technologies, the projects hope to provide solutions to the imminent food shortage issue.

This is an early design for Harry, Small Robot Company's precision drilling and planting robot. (Caption by Charles McLellan)

Read the full cover story by Charles McLellan: Smart farming: How IoT, robotics, and AI are tackling one of the biggest problems of the century

Rachael, SRC's prototype robot, is used for testing control systems and gathering AI training data. (Caption by Charles McLellan)

Read the full cover story by Charles McLellan: Smart farming: How IoT, robotics, and AI are tackling one of the biggest problems of the century

SRC's precision-planting mechanism will be based on the haraka, a simple punch-planting device. (Caption by Charles McLellan)

Read the full cover story by Charles McLellan: Smart farming: How IoT, robotics, and AI are tackling one of the biggest problems of the century

The latest prototype of Small Robot Company's Harry, a precision drilling and planting robot, at the Agri-Tech East REAP Conference in November 2018. Pictured are: Belinda Clarke (left), Director of Agri-Tech East, and Sam Watson Jones (right), co-founder of Small Robot Company. (Caption by Charles McLellan)

Read the full cover story by Charles McLellan: Smart farming: How IoT, robotics, and AI are tackling one of the biggest problems of the century

The HandsFree Hectare project grows crops using autonomous machinery. No human has set foot in the one-hectare field for two seasons. (Caption by Charles McLellan)

Read the full cover story by Charles McLellan: Smart farming: How IoT, robotics, and AI are tackling one of the biggest problems of the century

A small, lightweight seed drill, normally used for planting between rows of vines, was used to sow the barley crop. (Caption by Charles McLellan)

Read the full cover story by Charles McLellan: Smart farming: How IoT, robotics, and AI are tackling one of the biggest problems of the century

An autonomous combine--again, smaller and lighter than conventional farm machinery--harvesting HFHa's first crop in September 2017. (Caption by Charles McLellan)

Read the full cover story by Charles McLellan: Smart farming: How IoT, robotics, and AI are tackling one of the biggest problems of the century

The Agronomy Center for Research and Education (ACRE) at Purdue University in West Lafayette, IN along with Land O'Lakes/WinField United are exploring how the implementation of big data, satellite imagery and drones, IoT sensors, and genetic testing can lower agricultural costs and improve the overall farming process.

Farm equipment at the Agronomy Center for Research and Education at Purdue University. (Caption by Teena Maddox)

Read the full cover story by Teena Maddox: Agriculture 4.0: How digital farming is revolutionizing the future of food

Test fields at the Agronomy Center for Research and Education at Purdue University. (Caption by Teena Maddox)

Read the full cover story by Teena Maddox: Agriculture 4.0: How digital farming is revolutionizing the future of food

Testing variables in plant growth at the Agronomy Center for Research and Education at Purdue University. (Caption by Teena Maddox)

Read the full cover story by Teena Maddox: Agriculture 4.0: How digital farming is revolutionizing the future of food

Jim Beaty (right), superintendent of the Purdue Agronomy Center, doing a tour of his facility. (Caption by Teena Maddox)

Read the full cover story by Teena Maddox: Agriculture 4.0: How digital farming is revolutionizing the future of food

Testing high-tech farm equipment at the Agronomy Center for Research and Education at Purdue University. (Caption by Teena Maddox)

Read the full cover story by Teena Maddox: Agriculture 4.0: How digital farming is revolutionizing the future of food

Technology in place at the Agronomy Center for Research and Education at Purdue University. (Caption by Teena Maddox)

Read the full cover story by Teena Maddox: Agriculture 4.0: How digital farming is revolutionizing the future of food

Also see

• The future of food (ZDNet/TechRepublic special feature)
• How 5G will impact the future of farming and John Deere's digital transformation (ZDNet)
• Robotic indoor farms can grow food anywhere, anytime (ZDNet)
• Farming for the future: How one company uses big data to maximize yields and minimize impact (TechRepublic)
• Drone technologies could increase farmers' productivity by 500 percent (TechRepublic)
• Walmart now uses blockchain to trace food, will others follow? (TechRepublic)
• More must-see food tech coverage (TechRepublic Flipboard magazine)