Our society has been getting more interest in the issue of “global warming.” Now, we can notice that global warming is not just any one individual’s problem. When it comes to global warming, is the issue just about glaciers melting in the North Pole or our planet getting hot? It is much more than that. Global warming has been destroying our environment. Because of high temperature, water depletion, drought, floods, and an increase in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, our food yields have been decreasing quickly. According to the 2022 report from Nature Climate Change, food yields will continue to decrease and by 2050, they will decrease by up to 4% or more. Recently, an agricultural method discovered to solve this food shortage problem has been gaining attention.

So, what is this new farming method, Smart Farming? Smart Farming is a new technology that allows us to grow plants and raise animals in a proper environment. It can control temperature and humidity using a remote control system with information and communication technology (ICT).

Smart Farming is broadly divided into three categories: Smart Greenhouse, Smart Orchard, and Smart Barn. These three methods are controlled by personal computers (PCs) to produce quality fauna and flora. PCs are used to create the right environment, monitor growth, and remove pests.

However, even though Smart Farming can efficiently use energy, require less labor, and increase food production, it also has its shortcomings. Among these shortcomings are the high costs for growing plants and raising animals, distrust in ICT due to the danger of potential hacking, a labor shortage as fewer people want to work for agricultural corporations, and concerns about predicting natural disasters and controlling the electricity supply.

Despite these shortcomings, our society is making efforts to popularize Smart Farming. For example, the Industry & Academic Cooperation Foundation of Cheongju University offers free training on Smart Farming and issues a certificate to those who complete the training, encouraging more farmers and agricultural corporations to try Smart Farming.

Now, instead of showing only resistance and concernsabout Smart Farming, why don’t we consider it a potential method to preserve future food supplies, take an interest, and make efforts to develop this new agricultural approach?