The Economic Engine of Ag
By Russ Elliott, CEO, Siskiyou Telephone (Etna, Calif.)
What can we do to celebrate National Agriculture Day? Commit to bringing future-proof/scalable broadband to our country's unserved rural communities. As a Smart Rural Community provider serving 2,400 square miles, seven exchanges and 4,000 passes, the cost to build per mile is a daily challenge.
Our serving area empowers northern California's agriculture stewards. These multi-generational farmers and ranchers grow alfalfa, hay and livestock consumed nationally. These people have been self-sufficient for generations. Even today, some operate without commercial power, and many need more broadband access.
That’s why we must push the technology envelope and use creative solutions and current federal infrastructure funding to help these residents employ the tools they need to embrace modern farming and ranching technologies to stay relevant on the national and international scene. Most agricultural equipment produced today has technology that helps increase profitability but is dependent on high-speed broadband.
Below are three examples that showcase the interplay between broadband and Ag Tech:
- Feed farmers who depend on water to produce hay and alfalfa need real-time information on water amounts, needs and production. Farmers in Scott Valley leverage their LTE tech, powered by a fiber backhaul, to manage, monitor and control their center pivot sprinklers. They can manage thousands of acres of crops on a smart device from their homes or the road.
- Livestock producers can get connectivity to the barns, where they often must manage feeding, breeding and processing. We call it fiber to the barn. We have a local equine midwife who can remotely monitor the sometimes-challenging birth process and ensure the process is coming along naturally or receive alerts if there are complications. She breeds 20-30 mares a season and this tech allows her to manage her stalls 24/7 and share the experience with the horse owners so they can see the birth from their remote locations.
- Tractors are now autonomous, making our farmers more efficient in seeding, fertilizing and harvesting. However, this demands continual high-speed connectivity for monitoring and to ensure the equipment stays on course. We see farms leverage mesh technology from their fiber across their fields to maintain that connection.
While our heads are into building a robust fiber network for all our residents, we salute these farmers and ranchers with a small act of kindness this year. We plan to have an “eat local” day, where we eat locally sourced produce and meat, here in our offices to celebrate their important work on March 19, 2024.