Agriculture is an economically weak industry that's often affected by the natural and economic environments. Farmers worldwide are looking to reduce operational costs and improve profitability, and agricultural subsidies are a crucial resource to incentivize them under the tightening financial belt. With the push towards Agriculture 4.0, many countries, particularly within the EU, are promoting subsidy programs to reward farmers for adopting modern, data-driven technologies.
The Farm Management System (FMS) stands out as a practical solution to help farmers meet these requirements and streamline the subsidy application process. This blog explores the significance of agricultural subsidies and highlights how FMS can empower farmers to optimize their practices and receive much-needed financial support.
Why Agriculture Subsidy Matters?
Agricultural subsidy, also called agricultural incentive, is a government subsidy paid to agribusinesses, agricultural organizations and farms to supplement their income, manage the supply of agricultural commodities, and influence the cost and supply of such commodities. The aim of the subsidy is mostly to encourage farmers to increase productivity.
In Europe, agriculture is an important industry for all EU countries and EU funds are granted through the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). According to CAP, there are about 10 million farms in the EU and the farming and food sectors together provide nearly 40 million jobs in the EU—an obvious fact that can't be ignored when one wonders why agriculture in most EU countries is highly subsidized.
The EU generally provides funds for farmers based on their farm's size in hectares, not the quantities produced. This motivates farmers to respond to market demands in order to increase profit instead of overproduction. The income support also requires farmers to embrace sustainable agriculture for farm-to-fork health and environmental friendliness.
Often, such subsidies are available for farms using advanced equipment like FMS that can send and receive data through the internet. This in turn encourages farmers to speed up the digital transformation in their farms, serving as a significant catalyst for accelerating modernization within the EU's agricultural sector.
Data Recording: Keeping Everything for Subsidy Applications
One of the key aspects of agricultural subsidies is providing detailed operational data over several years, typically ranging from 3 to 5 years. FMS is designed to collect and manage this data seamlessly, reducing farmers' stress in meeting the specific requirements of agricultural subsidy programs.
According to Angelucci, a large farm in Italy that has been in operation for many years, receiving subsidies from the local government has always been an extension of their farming budget. "We can now record working conditions and tasks information in detail. When it's time to apply for subsidies, all the data required is already there, and we can use them readily."
"The FMS provided by FJD is very cost-effective and can achieve good results without too much investment." After recognizing its potential benefits for securing subsidy support, Angelucci decided to invest in the premium edition of FMS for four years to meet their agricultural production needs and, crucially, fulfill the requirements for subsidy applications.
FMS can automatically record essential telemetry data such as GPS location, fuel levels, and real-time operational conditions. Whether it's the route a tractor takes or the precise amount of fuel used, FMS keeps track of every aspect of farming activity. This data can be exported in multiple formats, including Excel and PDF, making it easy for farmers to compile and present the necessary records for subsidy applications.
Data Security: Focusing on Long-Term Stability
As agricultural subsidy programs evolve, the need for reliable, long-term data management becomes even more imperative. One of the concerns shared by farmers is the security and longevity of their farm data. FMS assists farmers in complying with regulatory requirements related to food safety, environmental stewardship, and agricultural subsidies.
"Our feedback to FJD is solved quickly. We can tell that they understand our worry about data security and stability. We're happy about their regular updates in the system, this gives us confidence that FJD can continue to meet our growing needs in farming activities and subsidy programs." Angelucci expressed their satisfaction with FJD's continuous product optimization.
Angelucci added that apart from subsidy application convenience, FMS becomes much more useful when used in conjunction with FJD's navigation kit. "FMS can quickly generate boundary and guidance line data and send it to the navigation kit. This increases our farming efficiency and saves us a lot of time working outside."
With FMS, farmers can respond to the changing landscape of agricultural policies, as the system provides tools for record-keeping, data management, and generating reports required for regulatory compliance and certification audits. This frees farmers from complicated data collection and gives them more time for other critical farming tasks.
Final Thoughts on FMS
Farming financial support is essential for farmers, and FMS offers an invaluable tool for them to navigate the complexities of agricultural subsidies. By providing comprehensive data recording and management capabilities, FMS helps farmers optimize their operations while meeting the strict data requirements needed for subsidy applications.
If you have purchased FJD's navigation kits, you are entitled to one year of complimentary access to FMS, which holds a value of up to 99 USD. Upon the conclusion of this one-year period, if you want to continue using FMS, you can proceed with a purchase either through the FJD official website or by reaching out to your local dealer. This ensures uninterrupted service and full utilization of the FMS features beyond the initial free year.
References:
1. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agricultural_subsidy
2. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/topics/en/article/20210916STO12704/common-agricultural-policy-how-does-the-eu-support-farmers
3. https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/common-agricultural-policy/income-support/income-support-explained_en
4. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/topics/en/article/20211118STO17609/eu-agriculture-statistics-subsidies-jobs-production-infographic
5. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0264999323000767