Agtrinsic and GROWMARK Expand Crop Pathogen Monitoring in Illinois and Iowa

By Andi Anderson

Agtrinsic and GROWMARK are set to expand their pathogen detection network, covering the entire expanse of Illinois and Iowa for the upcoming 2024 growing season. Building on the success of a two-hundred-sensor real-time pathogen detection network deployed in 2023, this collaboration aims to revolutionize disease management in row crops.

Agtrinsic's earlier deployment covered the bottom two-thirds of Illinois, incorporating Scanit Technologies' SporeCams into their expansive 280-million-acre broad-scale corn and soybean disease model. Following successful results, Agtrinsic expanded from twenty million acres to forty million acres in 2022, demonstrating the reliability and scalability of their technology.

With data collected during the 2023 season, Agtrinsic, in partnership with GROWMARK, decided to create a contiguous disease monitoring network, extending from border to border in Illinois and Iowa, and reaching into parts of Missouri, Kentucky, Indiana, and Wisconsin.

Scanit Technologies' CEO, Pete Manautou, expressed excitement about the transformative shift in disease monitoring at such a significant scale. GROWMARK's director of FS agronomy, Brendan Bachman, highlighted the urgency to explore new solutions for managing airborne pathogens, emphasizing the need for better management and higher ROI on farms.

The partnership's priority is to offer a new approach to utilizing data through data connectivity, analytics, and AI-based tools. In addition to SporeCams, Agtrinsic will integrate Spornado genetic testing in the 2024 cropping season, further strengthening their multistate Sporecam pathogen detection grid.

Access to the Illinois and Iowa pathogen detection network and disease model for 2024 will be available through Agtrinsic or FS member cooperatives via their MyFS Agronomy platform, providing farmers with valuable insights and empowering them to make informed decisions.

This collaboration marks a significant advancement in precision agriculture, combining AI technology, data science, and innovative pathogen detection tools to revolutionize disease management in row crops across a vast agricultural landscape.

Photo Credit: growmark