Japan: Cabbage harvest forecast and standard using aerial photography, as tested through a collaboration between Hyogo Prefecture and JA Awaji Island

In collaboration with Hyogo Prefecture, JA Awaji Island, and IT companies, we embarked on a test to predict cabbage yield for each shipping standard such as L and M. Based on field images taken with a drone (small unmanned aerial vehicle). In addition, the harvest suitability and the number of harvested pieces are predicted for each shipping standard. Detailed shipping information will be provided to actual demand in advance, which will lead to differentiation from other production areas. According to the prefecture, the amount of cabbage harvested is currently limited to the "total number" forecast based on the number of seedlings planted. However, the error is large, and the breakdown for each shipping standard is not known until harvesting. It is said that the technology for predicting each shipping standard has not been put into practical use in Japan. In the test, NEC Solution Innovators (Koto-ku, Tokyo) will use the crop growth observation technology that was launched in ...