Organize and improve your farm without the busywork.

Farm software designed to help modern farmers and ranchers know more, grow more and sell more, all from one easy to use place.

integrated farm planning, record keeping, management, tracking, sales and reporting software to run a thriving farm or livestock business

Stop fumbling around in filing cabinets and with spreadsheets. Farmbrite puts everything you need to manage your day-to-day operations, keep detailed records, market & sell online and report on your investments in one place.

No longer are farmers using notebooks and spreadsheets to manage farms and keep records – they are fast making the switch to farm management software.  The modern farm is coping with a great deal more than food production: climate change, pest and disease attack, decreasing soil fertility and depleting resources.  At the consumer end too, even packaging and labeling that is not up to the mark can lead to wastage of the crop and increase the incidence of food-borne illnesses due to pathogens.  Irrespective of whether one is managing a big farm business or a small family farm, every farmer wants to achieve a profitable production – and farm management software helps get this right.

How does farm management software operate?

Farm management software helps the farmer to be strategic in his day-to-day operational planning. It also brings about efficiency and organization to the work performed on the field.  The farmer becomes acquainted with tools that put all of his fieldwork and paperwork under one single window of control, making it simpler than ever go get an overview of his farm.  Specifically, farm management software enables the collection, processing, storage and dissemination of data in the form of information that helps to carry out the operations of the farm.  This data can be related to land use, inputs, product price, and others.  Even personal records and financial production data is helpful for farmers to analyze so as to make decisions that can increase operational efficiency.  The farm management software also works in real-time to help prevent waste and damage.  This software captures both scheduled and on-going activities along with the consumption of resources and costs employed, for every activity on the farm.

Why should the farmer use farm management software?

Better Planning and Tracking:

Farm management software provides the farmer with a holistic view of all farm activities and inputs through a single platform, which enables efficient planning, the capacity to track activities in real-time and thus take the right decisions.  This software can suggest the timing of all farm activities, appropriate pest control measures and application of suitable fertilizer. This software comes inbuilt with team collaboration features so that it can be used by all team members.

Savings on Inputs and Costs:

As the software is able to take on a holistic view, the system can combine both business and operational data to improve efficiencies, which can increase the farmer’s return on investment by nearly 20 percent.

Risk Management:

The software comes with features such as weather forecasting and pest-detection, which can help farmers have better control, by alerting farmers to any impending risk.

Compliance with Regulatory Requirements:

The software also provides compliance with Global Agricultural Practices and traceability mechanisms.  Through these certifications, farmers are able to produce high-quality food that is safe for consumers.

Social Responsibility and Sustainability:

The above factors combined contribute to reducing the impact of farming on the environment.  By helping to decrease water and fertilizer/pesticide usage and thus reduce the chemical run-off to rivers and groundwater, it contributes to sustainable agricultural practices.

Choosing the right FMS

The choice of different types of farm management software in the market and making a decision can be overwhelming for the farmer.  Therefore, the way to make a decision is to choose one that provides a complete solution and also integrates into the existing software, hardware, and third-party systems, providing full support for every aspect of their production.

To qualify as farm management software, the product must be able to

1.Track and provide insights into the day-to-day operations and aspects of a farm

2. Provide tools to improve production efficiency and profitability of a farm

3. Track and monitor field workers’ progress and communication

4. Offer crop management functionality

5. Coexist with other agriculture/agribusiness solutions.

A mobile version of the application is just as important because if the FMS works offline, the farmer can simplify data entry by doing it in the field, as soon as a particular task is done, which he should be able to do on a mobile app even if there is no internet connectivity.  This way the farmer can save any data that is recorded, and sync it with the web application whenever he gets online.  He should also have the option of setting up his account in his preferred language.

Growth in the software tools market

In the case of the United States alone, the software market for farming tools such as yield monitoring, field mapping, and weather forecasting is expected to grow 14 percent by 2022.  According to researchers, if these technologies are adopted on a large scale, it can lead to farm productivity levels not seen since the advent of mechanization.  Some of the world’s most well-known investors combined to pump 40 million USD into Farmers Business Network, a data analytics startup.

The agri-tech space is now getting an inflow of such venture capital, which has been increasing at a rate of 80% a year since 2012.  Investors are beginning to see that big data can revolutionize the food chain, from farm to fork.   Analytics that help in assessing forward and backward cropping patterns helps in determining the best crops to plant, taking both sustainability and profitability into consideration.  Even for urban farmers who are turning rooftops and abandoned plots into farms, big data holds a lot of promise.  In combination with the Internet of Things, big data can reduce scarcity and increase food supply, if backed with the right policies that support the modernization of farming.

What do users of FMS have to say?

“Having last season’s [satellite] imagery is the only way I could have identified the [uneven application] problem. Now I can avoid the same problem every year in the future. FarmLogs just saved me $16,000 per year!” says Clint D., a farmer from Tennessee, United States.

“With the Marketing tool, we always know what percent of our crop we’ve sold, what our price is on the average, where it’s got to get delivered, and basis. With FarmLogs everything’s right at our fingertips, and we know at a glance exactly where we’re sitting”, says Randy from South Dakota, United States.

What Is Farm Management Software and Who Is It For?

05.04.2021 – 9 minute read

Vaido Pechter

    

In Ratatouille, Alfredo Linguini’s cooking is magically improved with the help of a rat blessed with extraordinary culinary skills. Cinderella went from rags to riches thanks to her fairy godmother. Puss in Boots helped his master gain the hand of a princess in marriage. Farming today poses far greater challenges than the protagonists of these children’s stories, starting from demanding physical environments to dealing with time-consuming paperwork.

Maybe you’ve dreamed of your own little helper? A solution to overcome these challenges, bring greater efficiency, lower production costs, and higher profits to your business while giving you more time with your family? Perhaps to be able to take some time to read your children some bedtime stories? Luckily, such solutions exist – no magic wands or abracadabra required. The answer? Farm management software.

What Is Farm Management Software?

Farm management software includes websites, mobile apps, and computer programmes built for the farming sector and helps the farmer make more informed production and operational decisions:

• Aids in day to day organisation
• Makes it easier to manage workers
• Improves farm record-keeping
• Helps to comply with regulatory requirements
• Reduces modern farming’s impact on the environment
• Monitors and analyses the seasons, farm activities and costs for greater efficiency and profitability

There are various farm management systems on the market, each of which include more generalised solutions for those working in multi-sector farming as well as options for single sector operations.

BUDGETING AND FORECASTING SOFTWARE

Designed for planning financial resources; estimating future revenues and expenses. It enables farmers, accountants, and bankers to work together by giving them real-time access to data.

COMMODITY MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE

Used for managing commodity inventories, commodity management software tracks and reports cash flow, logistics and financials for more efficient sales and marketing.

PRECISION AGRICULTURE SOFTWARE

Precision agriculture software ensures profitability, efficiency, and sustainability by making farming activities more accurate and controlled by incorporating technology such as drones, GPS-based soil sampling and automated hardware.

LIVESTOCK AND MIXED FARMING SOFTWARE

Livestock and mixed farming software enable farmers to record livestock throughout their lifecycle. It can track animal inventory – including numbers and measurables – pasture rotations, grazing, and feeding plans, and provide financial tracking to record livestock sales profits.

BROADACRE CROPPING SOFTWARE

Designed for crop management, broadacre cropping software monitors and optimises crop production. It helps with audits- and compliance reports, keeps the field and crop records up to date and provides a way for farmers, workers and agronomists to collaborate.

The ideal solution should be reliable, intuitive and easy to use so that you can relax and concentrate on innovating your business rather than be stuck under the paperwork. But first and foremost, it should ensure its users’ data privacy. Mobile apps and offline and online capabilities of new generation cloud-based apps offer real-time data sharing. They allow farmers to keep an eye on the business wherever they are and delegate tasks to save even more valuable time.

Who Needs Farm Management Software?

Farm management solutions are for anyone who wants a better overview of their business, save time and money and be more environmentally friendly. You don’t have to be involved in a large-scale operation to reap the benefits. Being able to make decisions supported by data, having more accurate farm records, and the possibility of tracking and monitoring farm activities in real-time do not only increase profits but also lead to more sustainable farming practice – something that is becoming increasingly important no matter the size of the business.

Moreover, farm management software also benefits agronomists and workers. Agronomists can access relevant information via the app, making the collaboration and communication between them and the farmer much more efficient, and at the same time, the workers can conveniently keep track of the tasks assigned by the farmer or the agronomist.

 

Try eAgronom farm management software for free!

Create your account here

 

What Does Farm Management Software Consist Of?

The farm management software solutions offer various features to help farmers deliver the best results:

Farm mapping – Create a digital version of your farm for an accessible overview and monitoring.

Paddock management – Record and manage everything from planting and spraying to fertilisation and harvesting.

People and task management -Tracking working hours, issuing work orders, including details, location, user assignment and notes.

Inventory management – Keep an eye on the storage: record incoming materials and track the ones you’ve used up.

Reports – Create more accurate farm records including the cost of production, weather information and history of farm activities and make better decisions backed by data.

Agricultural and financial analysis – Learn from the mistakes and successes of previous seasons with automatically stored data. Compare management costs with planned revenue to avoid loss at the end of the season.

Audits and regulatory compliance – Farm management software can inform you about laws and regulations and help you run reports and prepare audits without having to fill out spreadsheets.

Scouting & NDVI – The fastest way to find trouble spots on the paddock, satellite NDVI helps keep a close eye on your fields at all times.

Weather monitoring – Accurate weather data on spray records helps comply with regulations and minimises the risk of litigation

Tracking and traceability – This feature allows the grower to track the produce from the paddock to the buyer to increase supply chain visibility, improve quality control systems, and reduce risk.

How Does Farm Management Software Help Grain Growers?

Highly beneficial for all types of farms and agribusinesses with tools to increase productivity and profitability, farm management software also caters to grain growers’ specific needs.

The most crucial part of every grain farm operation is crop planning. Good planning increases the average crop yield for the following rotation year, saves costs and time while decreasing the use of fertilisers and herbicides, and, therefore, promotes more sustainable farming practices. Farm management software allows farmers to create crop plans quickly and efficiently. For example, with eAgronom, one can plan a crop rotation that is sustainable, logistically optimised and complies with legislation for up to five years into the future, which means that something that usually could take weeks to complete can be ready in a matter of minutes. Need to change something? The software will provide a new plan based on the altered information. With eAgronom, the consultants go over each project so that the farmers can be confident in getting a tailored top-notch solution.

In addition to taking the pressure off one of the essential factors of a grain farm operation, farm management software can help grain growers with:

Soil sensors to measure soil temperature and moisture for the optimal time for sowing, fertilising and spraying.
Harvest period: keep an eye on the progress – how much has been harvested and what’s left to do.
Navigating the paddocks more easily thanks to the farm maps on mobile devices: save fuel, labour costs, machinery and the environment.

Best Farm Management Software Systems for Australian Farmers

Australian farmers often need to respond to challenging physical environments determined by climate, soil type and water availability. Well-managed farms can better protect themselves against threats posed by harsh conditions, and that’s where farm management software can lend a helping hand. Let’s take a look at a few examples of the best farm management software systems:

FIGURED

Farm financial management software designed explicitly by two farmers and accountants. Access livestock and crop information and financial data all in one place. The features include budgeting and planning, livestock, crop and milk production tracking, multi-farm management, and stock valuation calculation.

EKA

This cloud-native CTRM/ETRM solution allows businesses to manage the entire trading life cycle with advanced analytics to adapt to rapidly changing market dynamics and offers. The software involves a streamlined sustainability solution, including pre built sustainability reports, for monitoring the strategic use of energy and resources.

JOHN DEERE

John Deere’s leading precision agriculture software helps connect people, machines, technology, and insights. Collecting agronomic and machine operation data from sensors in the machines and the field – and information like weather and commodity pricing from external sources – optimises farm activities such as planting, tillage, and harvest and helps improve farm management.

AGRIWEBB

AgriWebb is an agriculture software company aiming to transform the livestock industry by helping farmers with record-keeping, compliance and productivity. The software harnesses simplified on-farm data collection and analysis for improved management efficiency and allows transparency, profitability and sustainability across the supply chain.

CONSERVIS

Suitable for row crop and permanent crop platforms alike, Conservis is a cloud-based comprehensive farm management software system that connects data across the operation for better business management. It provides traceability through features like real-time record-keeping, planning and budgeting and allows connecting field data to finances for better risk management, cost control and improved profitability.

EAGRONOM

eAgronom is a cloud-based farm management software designed for grain growers to improve their record-keeping, organize their tasks and plans, and analyse their seasons. It starts with the paddock map – the whole farm and the crops grown on each paddock. Crop planner allows creating the rotation for up to five years into the future with a few clicks. Tracking the tasks in eAgronom results in clear and easy record keeping. The inventory feature helps growers stay up to date with products and avoid unexpectedly running out of stock. eAgronom also has a mobile app that works offline. When the season’s over, eAgronom puts growers’ data to use. The analysis screen allows comparing yields, task schedules, fertility, and profit. The agronomists have their own accounts in eAgronom, from which they’ll be able to access your farm and work alongside the grower.

Other Software in Agriculture

In addition to farm management systems, there are other helpful software to improve and streamline agriculture operations. Here are a few examples:

SMART IRRIGATION SOFTWARE

These systems, used in conjunction with other agriculture software, optimise water usage throughout the crop lifecycle by helping businesses make informed decisions based on the collected data.

FEED MILL SOFTWARE

Nutrient values vary according to animals and their age, requiring the change in feed throughout their lifecycle. The software can solve this otherwise time-consuming task and calculate the suitable formulation within no time.