The Flemish government has been examining the opportunities and obstacles surrounding the use of drones in agriculture and horticulture. The topic was raised in the Flemish Parliament, where members discussed the issue with Flemish Agriculture Minister Brouns following questions from cd&v parliamentarian Stijn De Roo.

Several legal, practical, technical and economic barriers currently limit the widespread adoption of drones in the sector. One key obstacle is airspace access. Belgian airspace is heavily congested, and each product and application must be assessed individually for safety, with respect to people, the environment and surrounding areas. According to Minister Brouns, this requires careful evaluation before any such applications can be approved for practical use.

Technical and economic barriers also remain significant. Professional drones carry high upfront costs and require specialist training and expertise. Third-party drone services are not always available to growers, and when they are, they tend to be expensive. Ultimately, growers need to weigh those costs against the potential benefits.

Parliamentarian Stijn De Roo stressed the importance of ensuring that regulation keeps pace with technology: "We cannot afford a situation where a market-ready, affordable technology becomes available, one that could bring real benefits to our densely populated region, for example in precision agriculture, but cannot be deployed because of legal barriers."

Minister Brouns shares that view. He describes himself as a firm believer in precision agriculture. "It is a crucial tool for monitoring and tracking crops and fields, both in terms of soil health and plant health. That data, whatever aspect of agriculture or horticulture it concerns, is key to farming as efficiently as possible, within ecological limits."
 

Source: www.floradlaily.com