How Co-ops Can Lead the Way for DIY On-Farm Broadband

Key Points

• As American agriculture grapples with scarce labor and increasing costs, solutions could lie in the efficiency and efficacy of precision agriculture applications. But adoption has been hindered by a variety of issues, most notably the lack of affordable, reliable broadband access in rural America.
• The FCC’s decision to make Citizens Broadband Radio Service spectrum available has enabled a wide range of organizations to build their own carrier-grade private wireless networks at costs that were unthinkable a few years ago.
• With speeds in excess of 100Mbps and options for customization, these networks are a self-sufficient solution to support on-farm broadband demand for precision ag technologies.
• Cooperatives have an opportunity to build and deliver customized, carrier-grade, high speed private wireless networks to their farmer members to help drive the adoption of precision agriculture applications.
• Offering these network solutions could be a new, reliable revenue source for U.S. farm supply cooperatives, helping them to offset the highly competitive and volatile business of fertilizer, chemical, and other production input sales.

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