--- title: AI for Agronomy description: How can trusted information be accessed using AI toools to help crop husbandry decisions? This project tests an AI tool to support field decisions. image: https://thearc.farm/hubfs/AdobeStock_514645886.jpeg --- [Skip to content](https://thearc.farm/newsandupdates/ai-for-agronomy#main-content) [![Main Logo Colour](https://thearc.farm/hs-fs/hubfs/Logos/Main%20Logo%20Colour.png?width=2000&height=778&name=Main%20Logo%20Colour.png)Homepage](https://www.thearc.farm) - [Research Model](https://thearc.farm/research-model) - [Explain](https://thearc.farm/explain) - [Evidence](https://thearc.farm/evidence) - [Experiment](https://thearc.farm/experiment) - [Exchange](https://thearc.farm/exchange) - [Projects](https://thearc.farm/projects) - [ADOPT](https://thearc.farm/adopt) - [Network](https://thearc.farm/network) - [ARC Innovators](https://thearc.farm/innovators) - [News & Updates](https://thearc.farm/newsandupdates) [Connect](https://thearc.farm/contact-us) - [Research Model](https://thearc.farm/research-model) - [Explain](https://thearc.farm/explain) - [Evidence](https://thearc.farm/evidence) - [Experiment](https://thearc.farm/experiment) - [Exchange](https://thearc.farm/exchange) - [Projects](https://thearc.farm/projects) - [ADOPT](https://thearc.farm/adopt) - [Network](https://thearc.farm/network) - [ARC Innovators](https://thearc.farm/innovators) - [News & Updates](https://thearc.farm/newsandupdates) [Connect](https://thearc.farm/contact-us) ![](https://thearc.farm/hs-fs/hubfs/AdobeStock_514645886.jpeg?width=9480&height=5081&name=AdobeStock_514645886.jpeg) ADOPT Project Digital # AI for Agronomy ![Daniel Kindred](https://thearc.farm/hs-fs/hubfs/dk%20sancton%20cropped.jpg?width=48&height=48&name=dk%20sancton%20cropped.jpg) Daniel Kindred September 21, 2026 ## How useful is AI for the decisions farmers and agronomists actually make every day? Artificial intelligence is everywhere at the moment. We hear about its potential to transform agriculture, from autonomous machinery to crop monitoring and predictive modelling. This project is looking at whether AI can genuinely improve commercial agronomy — rather than simply adding another piece of technology to the farm. There is already an enormous amount of agricultural research and technical knowledge available from organisations such as AHDB, NIAB and ADAS. The challenge is often finding the right information at the right time. Farmers are busy, and searching through lengthy technical reports or academic papers isn't always practical when a decision needs to be made in the field. Research has identified this longstanding gap between agricultural research and what happens on farms. Digital decision-support tools have attempted to bridge that gap, but complexity and poor integration into day-to-day work are a barrier to use. This project takes a different approach. An AI assistant will be made available through WhatsApp — a familiar tool already used by many farmers and agronomists. Rather than simply asking a general-purpose AI for an answer, the system will use Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) to search a defined library of trusted UK agronomy research and guidance. The aim is to make the evidence easier to access and understand. Ask a question about nitrogen strategy, fungicide timing, variety choice or soil nutrients, for example, and the assistant can identify relevant research, summarise the key points and provide references back to the original source. Over the growing season, farmers and agronomists will record a range of real cropping decisions and assess whether using the assistant makes a meaningful difference. The study will look at factors such as the quality and completeness of decisions, time saved, user confidence, evidence supporting the decision and any risks introduced by using AI. Importantly, AI is not intended to replace the agronomist. It is being tested as a gateway to knowledge — helping farmers find and interpret information while keeping human judgement at the centre of the decision. Hence, the main question is does AI make it easier, quicker and safer to use the research we already have? ![Defra Innovate logo](https://thearc.farm/hs-fs/hubfs/Defra%20Innovate%20logo.png?width=774&height=230&name=Defra%20Innovate%20logo.png) ### Who is involved? ADOPT funding is supporting work from the following project partners: - Swinfen Farms Ltd. – Mark Swinfen (Lead) - Thriplow Farms Ltd. – David Thriplow - Cosecha Digital – Chris Fellows ## Share this post [mailto:https%3A%2F%2Fthearc.farm%2Fnewsandupdates%2Fai-for-agronomy](mailto:https%3A%2F%2Fthearc.farm%2Fnewsandupdates%2Fai-for-agronomy) ## Keep reading ### [![](https://thearc.farm/hs-fs/hubfs/AdobeStock_339458814.jpeg?width=5739&height=3831&name=AdobeStock_339458814.jpeg) ADOPT Project Soil Health Static Compost](https://thearc.farm/newsandupdates/static-compost) ### [![](https://thearc.farm/hs-fs/hubfs/AdobeStock_1838007274.jpeg?width=5321&height=3547&name=AdobeStock_1838007274.jpeg) ADOPT Project Nutrition Smart Slurry](https://thearc.farm/newsandupdates/smart-slurry) [![Main Logo Colour](https://thearc.farm/hs-fs/hubfs/Logos/Main%20Logo%20Colour.png?width=2000&height=778&name=Main%20Logo%20Colour.png "Main Logo Colour")](https://www.thearc.farm) © 2026 ARC Agronomic Sciences. All rights reserved. [Privacy Policy](https://thearc.farm/hubfs/Official%20Documents/ARC%20Privacy%20Policy.pdf) [Terms & Conditions](https://thearc.farm/hubfs/Official%20Documents/ARC%20Terms%20and%20Conditions.pdf) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Daniel Kindred", "url" : "https://thearc.farm/newsandupdates/author/daniel-kindred" }, "dateModified" : "2026-09-25T12:27:58.264Z", "datePublished" : "2026-09-21T09:38:53.000Z", "headline" : "AI for Agronomy", "image" : [ "https://thearc.farm/hubfs/AdobeStock_514645886.jpeg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://thearc.farm/newsandupdates/ai-for-agronomy", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://thearc.farm/hubfs/Logos/Main%20Logo%20Colour.png" }, "name" : "ARC Agronomic Sciences" } } ```