Integrated information & communication technologies and automation for sustainable agricultural production - ICT-AGRI ERA- NET Project

ICT-AGRI ERA- NET Project published a new international joint call for collaborative research projects in the field of Integrated information & communication technologies (ICT) and automation for sustainable agricultural production.

Objective:
ICT-AGRI aims to strengthen the European Research Area and develop a common European research agenda concerning ICT and robotics in agriculture. ICT-AGRI is funded by the European Commission's ERA-NET scheme under the 7th Framework Program (FP7) for Research.

Projects are expected to apply a systems approach addressing farm level integration of information technology, communication technology, automation and robotics.

Projects may be submitted in one of two categories:
 broad view by combining existing or new software and hardware products to demonstrate a system meeting important challenges within a specific application area
A narrow view by focusing on specific elements of vital importance for the functioning of integrated systems

Application Areas:
* Arable farming - Environmental protection, food safety and quality, sustainable bio-energy production, CO2 emissions, labour demands, chemicals reduction
* Livestock farming - Emissions of gas, dust and germs, environmental protection, animal welfare, disease monitoring, epidemics control, food safety and quality, labour demands
* Water and soil management - Irrigation optimisation, water saving, soil fertility mainte-nance, optimal fertilisation, environmental protection, drinking water protection, labour demands
* Greenhouses - Energy use, CO2 emissions, labour demands, pesticide reduc-tion
* Orchards - Irrigation and fertilisation optimisation, labour demands, food safety and quality
* Post harvest - Transport, storage, quality control, sorting, packing

Consortium:
Each proposal must involve project partners from at least three participating countries.

Further Information:
http://ict-agri.eu/Calls-7.aspx 

Contact Person:
David Shem-Tov - david.s@tx.technion.ac.il