Digital systems for agriculture took center stage on the opening day of EIMA International. The Digital Terrace hosts a presentation of Evja, an agronomic intelligence platform designed to optimize crop nutrition, protection and irrigation management. This advanced precision farming system collects field data through wireless sensors and processes it using artificial intelligence to develop predictive models. Farm data and operational information can be accessed at any time from a PC, tablet or smartphone, helping users plan interventions. Evja is the result of collaboration between young professionals working in agriculture and science and industry partners, including the CREA Research Center for Vegetable and Ornamental Crops and the San Lidano producer organization.
The second Digital Terrace event focused on the IT4LIA AI Factory portal, which is freely accessible to everyone.
The IT4LIA AI Factory initiative aims to strengthen the Italian and European artificial intelligence ecosystem through advanced infrastructure and a comprehensive portfolio of services for researchers, public administrations, businesses and start-ups. “This is a significant opportunity to access dedicated funding at no cost. A concrete opportunity whose full potential many organizations have yet to appreciate,” said Alessio Bolognesi, an engineer with FederUnacoma's Technical Department.
Working in the same field, the agrifoodTEF project brings together a network of physical and digital facilities across Europe. These facilities, known as nodes, provide services to assess and validate third-party artificial intelligence and robotics solutions under real-world conditions. Each node contributes recognized expertise in digital innovation for the agrifood sector and can guide users from service selection through to delivery and reporting.
On paper, the process is straightforward. Depending on their needs, users can identify relevant services in the agrifoodTEF catalog and contact the appropriate Italian Node partners directly. The selected services can then be tailored to refine the expected outcome and identify the most suitable testbeds, facilities and technical, regulatory and business support.
Once the service has been completed, users receive structured results and recommendations, including reports, options for improvement and information on the tested solution's market readiness.