Such freedom is particularly attractive to younger farmers, who are more comfortable with technology and tend to have careers and hobbies that keep them from roaming the fields as much as their parents may have, Balussi and others say.
That generational shift is one of the biggest challenges farmers face in Latin America — and in agriculture worldwide, Balussi says. “Producers are aging, and we don’t have young people coming into the industry to replace them,” he says. “But young people like technology, and it’s enticing and empowering them to get into agriculture and be successful.”
Panella, 42, was introduced to the new tech by Fecovita, a federation of 5,000 small vintners in 29 cooperatives, that helps promote and sell the wine they produce, together controlling 22% of Argentina’s wine market.
The group offers access to 26 agronomists and 60 winemaking experts that work in their own laboratory, a mechanized grape harvesting service, an aerial spraying service with drones — and a tech support team that includes Juan Garro, an agricultural engineer and agronomist who has been Fecovita’s technical coordinator for 10 years.
“Although many digital tools have appeared, we work with small producers who have had a hard time incorporating them because they don’t have access to smart devices or Wi-Fi,” Garro says. “But during the pandemic, even 70-year-old producers who had never touched a digital tool started connecting through video call platforms” — and are now adopting technology in their vineyards, thanks to a simplified app that lets them take action with just a push of a button.
Juan Garro, an agricultural engineer and agronomist, is the technical coordinator for Fecovita, a federation of 5,000 small vintners in Argentina. (Photo by Fernando de la Orden)
Vintners now can make speedier decisions, since they can reach experts for advice “practically 24 hours a day” without having to wait for technicians or agronomists to drive to their vineyards to diagnose issues, Garro says. And Fecovita’s digital platform makes it easier to upload documentation required by interested buyers, in a world where traceability provides a competitive advantage as consumers become more interested in sustainability and environmentally friendly practices. Some digital records are accessible to the cooperative’s team, too, to help them ensure the quality of the group’s wines.
“Now we can see everything that was ever done to the Malbec grape that entered Pool No. X and ended up in Bottle No. X,” Garro says. “And if we have some kind of problem, we can go back to identify exactly what happened along the way.”
As Panella began working with Fecovita’s tech team, she saw an increase in productivity with a decrease in the costs and time required, helping her better compete against larger winemakers in a region that the Mendoza government estimates has more than 1,200 wineries. The system relays satellite images to Fecovita’s agronomists, who help her monitor her vineyards and consult with her virtually through the app to ward off potential issues and keep her vines healthy and weed-free. The app alerts her to the possibility of frost, so she can plan in advance to protect the grapes.
Perhaps most importantly, given the decade-long drought in Mendoza, devices in Panella’s wells now let her start pumping water to her vines with a simple click in the app no matter where she might be, reducing water use through more precise stops and starts. Combined with insights from a nutritional analysis on the vines by Fecovita agronomists, some producers have been able to cut their water use by 10%, Garro says.
“We can see all the inputs and the quantities of everything we use to analyze if we are being optimal with the use of our resources and if we are going the right direction or not,” Panella says. “It’s a combination of humans and technology with this system that is guiding us to more efficiency and helping us be more competitive.”
Top image: Elizabeth Panella, who had an established career as an accountant, recently inherited a family vineyard in Argentina’s famed Mendoza Valley. (Photo by Fernando de la Orden)
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