CIGR Newsletter No 61
CIGR NEWS
CIGR - State and Perspectives
Never before in its 72-year history has CIGR had a larger total international membership than today. Currently, we find more than 90 nations in CIGR’s list of members. This is a result of the policy of the past presidents of CIGR, who built and expanded our international network of agricultural engineering, and – in particular – the result of a special attempt of our current President Prof. El Houssine Bartali from Morocco, who was able to win several francophone African countries as new members during his term of presidency.
Membership in CIGR can be practiced in different ways: Some individual members come from nations where a national agricultural engineering society does not exist. Other members attained their membership to CIGR via a national society. Most members are CIGR members through a national society that is a member of a regional society. The operation of CIGR is only made possible by the active participation of its members: We need their membership fees in order to do the administrative work, we need them to volunteer for active work within our society, and it is their responsibility to guarantee a high standard for the scientific results that are presented at CIGR meetings and conferences as well as in CIGR publications.
By the same token, CIGR provides services to its members. These are:
- The CIGR Websitewww.cigr.org. Feel free to visit this very informative site whenever you need some agricultural engineering information. Among the topics are the calendar of events, mission statements of the seven CIGR sections, and lists with addresses of people involved in the organization of CIGR activities. All this is maintained and kept up-to-date by Prof. Da-Wen Sun from Ireland.
- The CIGR-FAO networking system, initiated and maintained by Dr. Theodor Friedrich of the FAO. This networking system is organized parallel to the CIGR Sections, which means that every subscriber to one of the sections of the network can easily access all other subscribers within the same field of interest. Current questions may be discussed, information can be disseminated, and advice may be sought from colleagues. Feel free to use this network for your scientific work.
- The CIGR Electronic Journal, named Agricultural Engineering International – The CIGR Journal of Scientific Research and Development. The journal is run by editor-in-chief Dr. Rosana G. Moreira, USA, and received continuing support during the last two years by our Past President Prof. Bill Stout, USA. Thanks to him the journal has published three complete volumes and a running volume with, in total, more than 68 articles. Papers may either be invited overview articles or submitted papers that pass a peer-review process which is managed through the Editorial Board of the Journal. That board currently consists of 64 members from 37 countries. This reviewing process is very efficient, so that, to my knowledge, this journal has the fastest throughput from submission to publication of all agricultural engineering journals worldwide. The archiving procedure – a problem for most electronic publications – is guaranteed by the distribution of CD-ROM copies of published volumes to leading libraries and, recently, the granting of an ISSN number to the electronic journal. In view of the rising expenses for other (printed) journals, it must be pointed out that the CIGR Electronic Journal does not have page charges for publication and its use is free-of-charge for everyone. Who needs more encouragement to submit papers to this journal? Visit cigr-ejournal.tamu.edu .
- The CIGR Handbook of Agricultural Engineering . In its present printed form, it comprises more than 2,400 pages in five volumes, or one CD-ROM with the same contents. This was achieved by the former editor-in-chief Prof. Osamu Kitani from Japan, who managed to convince all volume editors and contributors to help in this ambitious task and to meet a tight time-schedule for its finalization. Publication was prepared and carried out by ASAE, where Mrs. Donna Hull was in charge of the edition. It is now my task as editor-in-chief to continue with the publication of a sixth volume on Information Technology. This will comprise more than 30 sections dealing with the different basic and applied aspects of IT in Agricultural Engineering. Its publication may be announced for the beginning of 2003.
- The CIGR Newsletter that is used to disseminate current information to the members. It is published quarterly in English and in French (then named bulletin ), and further translations into Arabic and Chinese are under discussion. This service is provided by the CIGR Secretary General Prof. Peter Schulze Lammers and Ms. Frauke Beeken. I recommend everyone use this valuable source of information as much as possible and contribute to its currency by submitting reports, notes or other material for publication.
Of course, the General Secretariat of CIGR should not be cited only in connection with the preparation of the Newsletter, since almost everything within CIGR passes through this central agency within the society. CIGR gratefully acknowledges in this context the funding of the General Secretariat by the Ministry of Consumer Protection, Food, and Agriculture of the Federal Republic of Germany. This is the second four-year period in which this ministry grants considerable financial support for this institution to be housed in Bonn, the former capital of Germany. However, the support will only last until the end of the year 2005. It will be the task of the CIGR Presidium for the forthcoming years to find another country that is willing to grant further financial support. Without this, the continuing work of CIGR is not possible.
The scientific work within CIGR is organized in seven Sections. Section VII, "Information Systems", was founded very recently, namely during the CIGR 70th Anniversary Congress in Tsukuba, Japan, two years ago. This is a "cross-sectional" Section, which has relations to all other Sections of our society. The Section Chairs play a key role in the functioning of Sections and their scientific output. Their commitment to our society, as well as that of the active Section Board Members, is highly esteemed.
Figure: Relations of CIGR to its members
The great problems of world agriculture have not yet been solved. The food supply for the growing world population still remains an unsolved task; the population will increase from 6 billion now to an estimated 10 billion in 2050. This increase in population is accompanied by a decrease in arable land; every day the world loses some of the resources for agricultural production through erosion, desertification, or human activities like the building of houses, roads, etc. Drought and salinisation of soils have not been overcome in recent years; lack of water is increasingly limiting agricultural production in some parts of the world. Another problem is the energy consumption of the growing world population. Can agriculture play a considerable part in the solution of the world’s future energy supply? To a certain extent, this could be achieved if new fuel concepts, like "sun fuel" in Germany, were realized on an economical scale.
However, problems are very different in different parts of the world. The globalization of goods, finances, and information has not contributed to a smoothing of the North-South problems, the differences between developed and developing countries, or urban-rural conflicts. The so-called "digital divide" that is observed between rural and urban areas in developing countries must be overcome. This particularly because the Internet is, in principle, a medium that can be used to assist rural development with e-commerce, tele-medicine, tele-administration, tele-machine-maintenance, tele-working, and remote education (to cite only some of the major opportunities). The different problems can also be demonstrated with the different meanings of common phrases like: "Food security." In developing countries, this means a high degree of certainty in the ability to feed the population. In developed countries, the same term designates the ability to provide healthy, nutritious, and palatable food that is free of contaminants. In fact, during the last two years, the problems of diseases like BSE, FMD, and food scandals like the nitrophene contamination of wheat in Germany or the very recent hormone contaminations of animal food observed in a great number of member states of the EU have contributed to a higher demand for food traceability in the developed countries.
The Agricultural Engineering Society is asked for possible solutions to all of these problems. Agricultural Engineers, together with scientists of other related disciplines, should make all possible efforts to find adequate solutions. They should present and discuss them within the scientific community and, finally, present them to the public and to the political decision-makers. I am confident that CIGR and its members can play a valuable role in this task.
It is the world-wide network of CIGR that can be used to discuss the urgent problems with a global perspective, to facilitate global understanding, and to build bridges between different climatic, social, and cultural zones. After this CIGR World Congress we will meet in various specific conferences and workshops organized by the Sections. Future comprehensive events have been scheduled as follows:
2004: Beijing, China: International CIGR Conference
2006: Bonn, Germany: XVI International CIGR World Congress
2008: Location to be decided: International CIGR Conference
2010: Québec, Canada: XVII International CIGR World Congress
The Club of Bologna has held some of its meetings in conjunction with CIGR major events, like the Tsukuba 70th Anniversary Congress as well as this World Congress in Chicago. I hope that this very fruitful practice can be extended to future CIGR events, and I gratefully acknowledge the support by the Club of Bologna, and, in particular, its President Prof. Giuseppe Pellizzi from Italy.
The main tasks that I see within CIGR for the years 2003 and 2004, i.e., the years of my presidency, are the following:
- Consolidate the relations to the new members of CIGR, facilitate their further integration into our society, and provide any assistance to help them play an active role within our scientific community.
- Strengthen the relations of CIGR to its Sections in order to make the scientific community more aware of the valuable work within the Sections and to facilitate the scientific exchange among them.
- Continue to provide informative, sound, and up-to-date services in printed and electronic form to our members.
With its 72-year history, CIGR is already an "old" scientific community. But it develops with its members, who we want to be:
Communicative within their profession and in the inter-disciplinary context
Innovative in their research and development work
Global thinkers with great concern for environmental issues
Restless in the further development of their profession and the AgEng Society
I am particularly grateful to all the colleagues whom I cited by name in the above text as well as to all supporters of CIGR. Within these supporters, I would like to cite by name Past President of ASAE Wayne Skaggs and Executive Vice President Melissa Moore and her co-workers. I would also like to address here Prof. Luis Santos Pereira from Portugal, who was elected as Incoming President of our society. I hope that our joint future work and cooperation will be as fruitful as it has been in the past, or rather, as it is at present.
Axel Munack
CIGR President 2003-2004
CIGR Presidency 2001-2002
On December 31st of 2002, ended my term as President of the International Commission of Agricultural Engineering: CIGR which is one of the most respectable global networks.
I started my term a few weeks after the CIGR Memorial World Congress in Tsukuba, Japan at the end of November 2000. I was proud to take over the presidency of a strong commission whose activities were fostered by the outstanding leadership of my predecessor President Prof. Bill Stout, now Honorary President of CIGR and Professor at Texas A&M University.
Among the major issues that CIGR bodies examined in Tsukuba were: the outline of the cooperation between ASAE and CIGR for the joint Chicago congress, the CIGR Handbook and particularly the preparation of volume six on Information Technology, the development of CIGR activities and particularly section 7 on Information Systems, CIGR membership and visibility.
In the speeches I made both at the CIGR General Assembly and the Closing Ceremony of the Tsukuba congress I underlined the importance on the one hand of fostering CIGR cooperation with developing countries, particularly with the francophone sub- Saharan African countries and Arab countries, and on the other, of strengthening CIGR relations with its member associations and with FAO.
At the end of 2000, I started networking for CIGR and made several visits to a number of countries: Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Tunisia, Sierra Leone, France, Italy, and the USA. I attended more than 30 meetings both national and international. All of them were taken as opportunities to introduce the CIGR global network or to develop its links to rural development issues, training and the profession of agricultural engineering. Some of the major activities I have undertaken are listed in the following.
In line with the objectives indicated above, I met Dr Gendrau Massalou, the Rector of the Francophone University Agency (known as AUF), during her visit to the Moroccan Universities in January 2001. AUF is a large network connecting francophone universities, engineering schools and research institutions located in Europe, Canada, Africa and Asia. On this occasion, I extended my invitation for the Francophone West African engineering network of AUF to join CIGR. This network is led by the Inter-State School of Rural Equipment (EIER) located in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. EIER trains rural engineers for 14 francophone countries. I renewed this invitation to join CIGR when I met the Director of EIER, Mr Philippe Mangé in two subsequent meetings held in Yaoundé, Cameroon and in Ouagadougou (BF). Soon after that, EIER effectively joined CIGR and became the equivalent of a new regional association of CIGR for the west African region. This new membership enhanced greatly the CIGR presence in west Africa. In collaboration with the First Technical Section of CIGR, EIER organized an important inter-regional conference on the crucial issues of water resources management and environment protection in Ouagadougou in early November 2002.
A mini Presidium meeting was held on my request in early April 2001 at the National School of Agricultural Engineering (ENGREF) in Paris. This school was once directed by a famous personality in CIGR history: Mr Armand Blanc. Many agricultural engineers from North Africa and sub-Saharan francophone Africa graduated from this school. I myself graduated from it in June 1977, and Mr Philippe Mange was one of my class mates. The Presidium members were received by the General Director of the ENGREF School (Mr Cyrille Van Effenter).
This meeting in Paris was also an opportunity to acknowledge and consolidate CIGR's good relationship with the French national committee of CIGR and to thank particularly Mr Souty and his collaborators for their valuable continuous support regarding the publication of the CIGR bulletin (the French version of the CIGR newsletter). The bulletin constitutes a very efficient means of conveying information on CIGR activities to the francophone CIGR member countries.
In early July 2001, I had a very fruitful meeting in Rabat with Dr Salem ALOZI, General Director of AOAD (Arab Organization of Agricultural Development, headquartered in Khartoum, Sudan). He was visiting the Hassan II Institute of Agronomy and Veterinary Medicine of Rabat, Morocco, for the first time since his appointment as Head of AOAD. I presented CIGR objectives and activities to him and extended my invitation to AOAD to join CIGR. I was delighted to get his approval. He gave his instructions and AOAD became a CIGR member in 2002. The membership of this organisation is a gate to a great cooperation between CIGR and many Arab countries. To put their collaboration into practice, AOAD and CIGR will very soon jointly organize a seminar on rural development and mechanization in Arab countries and will work together for the publication of an Arabic version of the CIGR newsletter.
In addition to the contacts made with AOAD, I have deployed parallel efforts in order to help create national associations of agricultural engineers in a number of countries and promote their membership to CIGR. Contacts have already taken place in this regard with Tunisia and Algeria particularly through the activities of the Association for Mediterranean Exchanges whose members are agricultural engineers and forestry engineers from the Mediterranean countries.
The relations between FAO and CIGR have also been developing during the last two years thanks to the inputs from Mr Lawrence Clarke and Mr Theodor Friedrich. FAO made significant contributions to the programs of both the Tsukuba and the Chicago CIGR World Congresses. Additionally, FAO sponsored attendance from developing countries to the Chicago Congress and the distribution of the CIGR Handbook to libraries in such countries. Presently, the cooperation between CIGR and FAO includes a few domains, namely the management of seven listserve related to the fields of the CIGR Technical Dections, the agricultural engineering curriculum and the roster of agricultural engineers. However there still lies a great potential for CIGR and FAO to cooperate in joining their efforts to tackle rural development issues, food quality and security, environment protection and technology transfer in developing countries. I was pleased to meet in September 2001 with Mr Geoffrey Mrema, Director of Agricultural Support Systems Division at FAO Rome and to hear about his willingness to develop further the CIGR-FAO exchanges and cooperation. CIGR is particularly very interested in developing close ties with the new Agricultural and Food Engineering Technologies Service (AGST) recently created in FAO headquarters in Rome and wishes the Chief of AGST the best success.
The 2002 XVth CIGR World Congress in Chicago held jointly with ASAE was a very significant event of my mandate. The preparation process was conducted in a very harmonious way and continuous contacts took place between CIGR Presidium members and ASAE leadership. The international ASAE meeting of July 2001 in Sacramento was a major opportunity to launch the scientific program of the Chicago congress. The contacts between CIGR and ASAE were continued in Morocco.
In early April 2002, the CIGR Presidium members and ASAE President Dr Wayne Skaggs, ASAE Executive Vice President Mrs. Melissa Moore and the President of the Club of Bologna and Honorary President of CIGR Prof Giuseppe Pellizzi gatzhered for a very productive meeting and enjoyable tour in the cities of Marrakech and Agadir.
The XVth joint CIGR/ASAE congress turned out to be an outstanding scientific and technical event with 1700 participants and 900 oral and poster presentations. It was a marvelous illustration of the excellent cooperation existing between CIGR and ASAE. The Club of Bologna meeting held in Chicago provided an additional successful component of the XVth CIGR World Congress. The continuous activities of the club and the CIGR award sponsored by UNACOMA represent a major input to CIGR congresses. CIGR equally enjoys and is grateful for the sponsorship of its other awards made by the KISHIDA and KAMIC Foundations.
Another very significant event of this two-year mandate is the kind consent of the German Federal Ministry of Agriculture in 2001 to extend for four more years its financial support of the CIGR General Secretariat in Bonn. I expressed the gratitude of CIGR to the German Authority. This financial support has largely contributed to the development of CIGR activities and will be a major help for the preparation of the XVIth world CIGR Congress in 2006 in Bonn. Following this support, CIGR unanimously reelected Prof Peter Schulze Lammers to the post of General Secretary.
The 2006 Bonn Congress promises to be another outstanding CIGR World Congress. Also on the pipeline are two equally important international events: the CIGR major Conference on Agricultural Engineering in Beijing, China in 2004 and the XVIIth CIGR World Congress in Quebec City in 2010.
As CIGR President, I enjoyed very much the kind cooperation I received from Prof Peter Schulze Lammers, CIGR General Secretary in Bonn, and from his collaborators Ms Frauke Beeken and Mr Ludger Tolksdorf. I would like to thank them for all the excellent work they have been undertaking for the management of CIGR and for the visibility of its products and activities.
ANAFID, the Moroccan National Committee of CIGR, is recognized as one of the most fervent advocates of the CIGR network in developing countries and will remain so in the futures. It has provided me with all the support I needed to honor my commitments and duties within CIGR. I would like to express my deep thanks to Mr Abdallah Bekkali, President of ANAFID who was awarded the CIGR Kishida Prize in the Chicago CIGR/ASAE Congress.
I would also like to renew my great appreciation to the Chairs and Secretaries of the seven CIGR Technical Sections for their leadership and to Prof Da-Wen Sun for his remarkable work as the webmaster of CIGR. I am happy to welcome Prof Luis Pereira from Portugal as the newly elected Incoming President of CIGR.
I am very glad to contribute as CIGR Past President for the next two years. I am very confident in the future of CIGR and I feel happy to hand over the Presidency of this respectable Commission to a very competent and knowledgeable person: the new CIGR President for 2003 and 2004 and at the same time Editor-in-Chief of the CIGR Handbook: Prof Axel Munack from the Institute for Technology and Biosystems Engineering of Braunschweig, Germany.
I would like to wish all CIGR members from around the world and all readers of the CIGR Newsletter a Happy New Year 2003 and long life and prosperous future to CIGR.
Prof El Houssine Bartali
CIGR President 2001-2002
Professor and Chair Agricultural Engineering Department
IAV Hassan II, Rabat, Morocco
CIGR e-Journal/Agricultural Engineering International:
the CIGR Journal of Scientific Research and Development
http://cigr-ejournal.tamu.edu/ ISSN 1682-1130
Under the aegis of Editor-in-Chief Dr. Rosana Moreira, the CIGR electronic journal is about to complete its fourth year of publication. It has grown from a modest beginning and is now attracting many quality manuscripts. Here is a summary of the number of papers published to date:
Technical papers in Volumes I to IV (total-58):
I-7, II-10, III-23, IV-18 (until Nov, 2002)
Invited overview papers Volumes I to IV (total-30):
I-2, II-4, III-8, IV-16 (until Nov, 2002)
The published papers come from a broad international base:
Technical papers: Australia-2, Belgium-2, Cameroon-1, China-1, Czech Republic-2, Denmark-1, Estonia-1, Germany-4, Greece-3, Ireland-1, Israel-1, Italy-1, Japan-16, Lithuania-2, Netherlands-1, Nigeria-1, Poland-6, Portugal-2, Spain-5, Turkey-1, USA-4.
Invited overview papers (Including Club of Bologna keynote presentations): Brazil-3, FAO-3, France-1, Germany-2, Greece-1, India-1, Italy-2, Japan-1, Netherlands-2, Nigeria-1, Palestine-1, Poland-1, Russia-1, USA-10.
Check it out by accessing the website at http://cigr-ejournal.tamu.edu/ under "published papers". I invite all readers to submit manuscripts for peer review and publication. There is no cost to publish or to access and print papers. The website has all the details regarding manuscript format, submission instructions, etc. If you have any questions, please send me an email at stout@tamu.edu. Send manuscripts for peer review to the same address.
Dr. B.A. Stout, Coordinator.
December 5, 2002
Table of Contents for Volume IV (2002)
Peer Reviewed Technical Articles:
1.) G. Brehme and K.-H. Krause. Compartmental Airflow Simulation in Stables with Natural Ventilation. January 2002.
2.) J.F. Ortega, J.M. Tarjuelo, and J.A. Juan. Evaluation of Irrigation Performance in Localized Irrigation Systems of Semiarid Regions(Castilla-La Mancha, Spain). February 2002.
3.) E.A. Ajav and O.A. Akingbehin. A Study of some Fuel Properties of Local Ethanol Blended with Diesel Fuel. March 2002.
4.) B. Bjerg, K. Svidt, S. Morsing, G. Zhang, and J.O. Johnson. Modelling of a Wall Inlet in Numerical Simulation of Airflow in Livestock Buildings. March 2002.
5.) V. Alchanatis, Y. Kashti, and R. Brikman. A Machine Vision System for Evaluation of Planter Seed Spatial Distribution. April 2002.
6.) O. Slobodzian-Ksenicz, and T. Kuczynski. Effect of Litter Type on Ammonia Emission in Turkey Housing. May 2002.
7.) H.M. Houszka. Thermal Conditions within a Piglet Creep Area with Different Cover Constructions and Different Surface of Cover Materials. May 2002.
8.) R. Tsheko. Discrimination of Plant Species Using Co Occurrence Matrix of Leaves. May 2002.
9.) C.K. Cavalaris and T.A. Gemtos. Evaluation of Four Conservation Tillage Methods in the Sugar Beet Crop. June 2002.
10.) L. Wang, C.B. Parnell and B.W. Shaw. A Study of the Cyclone Fractional Efficiency Curves. June 2002.
11.) H. Takai, K. Nekomoto, P.J. Dahl, E. Okamoto, S. Morita, and S. Hoshiba. Ammonia Contents and Desorption from Dusts Collected in Livestock Buildings. June 2002.
12.) L. Wang, C.B. Parnell and B.W. Shaw. Performance Characteristics of Cyclones in Cotton-Gin Dust Removal. August 2002.
13.) A. Ikeguchi. Ultra Sonic Sprayer Controlling Dust in Experimental Poultry Houses. October 2002.
14.) Y. Nagasaka, K. Taniwaki, R. Otani, and K. Shigeta. An Automated Rice Transplanter with RTKGPS and FOG. October 2002.
15.) Y. Hirai, E. Inoue, K. Mori, and K. Hashiguchi. Analysis of Reaction Forces and Posture of a Bunch of Crop Stalks During Reel Operations of a Combine Harvester. October 2002.
16.) A. Oida and M. Momozu. Simulation of Soil Behavior and Reaction by Machine Part by Means of DEM. October 2002.
17.) A. Oida, H. Shimizu, J. Miyasaka, H. Fujimoto and T. Ibuki. Study on the Performance of a Model Electric Off-Road Vehicle. October 2002.
18.) Y. Kaizu, T. Okamoto and K. Imou. Shape Recognition and Growth Measurement of Micropropagated Sugarcane Shoots. October 2002.
Invited Overview Articles:
1.) J. Pawlak, G. Pellizzi and M. Fiala. On the Development of Agricultural Mechanization to Ensure a Long- Term World Food Supply. Club of Bologna. June 2002
2.) F. Coolman. Developments in Dutch Farm Mechanization: Past and Future. August 2002.
3.) J. Pawlak. Farm Machinery Market in the Second Half of the XX Century. July 2002.
4.) J. Cuello. Foreword to Agricultural Engineering and International Development in the Third Millennium. September 2002.
5.) L. Clarke and C. Bishop. Farm Power—Present and Future Availability in Developing Countries. October 2002.
6.) T. Takakura. Food Production Strategy in East Asia-Engineering Perspective in the Third Millennium. October 2002.
7.) A. Tamimi. Cooperation Through Education: How Southern West Bank, Palestine, Can Be Developed Through Agricultural Engineering. September 2002.
8.) J. Cuello. Making the World a Better Place: What the Agricultural Engineering Professional Organizations Can Do in the New Century to Make Good on Their Age-Old Promise. October 2002.
9.) D. Slack. Engineering in a Shrinking World. September 2002.
10.) G. Feyereisen. Social and Engineering Aspects of an Aquacultural Development Project in the Nakasongola District of Uganda. September 2002.
11.) W. Clyma. Management Strategies for Sustainable Irrigated Agriculture with Organizational Change to Meet Urgent Needs. September 2002.
12.) P. De Castro. Mechanization and Traceability of Agricultural Products: a Challenge for the Future-- Quality of Production, Reasons and Means for Traceability, Needs of Markets and Institutional and Prescriptive Aspects in the EU Context. Club of Bologna. September 2002.
13.) F. Pierce and R. Cavalieri. Globalization and Traceability of Agricultural Production: The Role of Mechanization. Club of Bologna. September 2002.
14.) I. Nääs. Applications of Mechatronics to Animal Production. Club of Bologna. October 2002.
15.) H. Auernhammer. The Role of Mechatronics in Crop Product Traceability. Club of Bologna. October 2002.
16.) B. Douthwaite. How to Enable Innovation. October 2002.
13th Club of Bologna Meeting on "Strategies for the Development of Agricultural Mechanization": Conclusions and Recommendations
68 experts from 35 countries and representatives from FAO, CIGR, AIT and UNIDO took part in the 13th Club of Bologna meeting, which was subdivided into two separate sessions on 27-28 July 2002 in Chicago in conjunction with the 15th World CIGR Congress and the ASAE Annual International Meeting, and on 16-17 November 2002 in Bologna on the occasion of the 33rd EIMA show. The general subject was "Mechanization and traceability of agricultural productions: a challenge for the future." In-depth discussions were dedicated to the following topics:
- The quality of productions. Market needs. Institutional and regulatory aspects.
- The role of mechatronics in the traceability of crop and livestock productions.
- Measurement and data collection systems for agricultural equipment.
- System integration and certification: the market demand for clarity and transparency.
- Traceability: the role of mechanization in monitoring processes and the quality of productions
1. "The quality of productions. Market needs. Institutional and regulatory aspects" was discussed on the basis of introductory presentations by: P. De Castro (Italy), F. Pierce and R. Cavalieri (USA).
P. De Castro started discussing the changes in the consumer patterns and food markets of the EU, where demand has become explicitly tied to the process and production systems, as a result of new requirements arising from consumer purchasing decisions. These changes have also prompted the EU to amend the CAP, to take into account that over 90% of European citizens expect the CAP to guarantee food products which are safe, healthful, and compatible with the environment. This led to the enactment of the "Food Law" in July 2001, which, inter alia, provides for the establishment of a food safety authority. This was also made necessary by differences between the rules of the various national legislations which threatened the functioning of the internal market. Hence the push toward traceability and the emergence of new roles for agricultural mechanization. These involve reducing production costs and developing the functional characteristics of the various machines so that they are able to fulfil the requirements of traceability at all times, and hence provide the assurances demanded by consumers. But the most important point of interest for mechanization is the problem of independently managing the different machines within complete production chains. What is more, there is a need to evaluate the "indirect" effects of the anticipated demand for technical solutions equired by the new agricultural and food industry scenarios.
F. Pierce and R. Cavalieri underlined that the future of agriculture in the U.S. and beyond and the effects of traceability are difficult to assess alone. U.S. agriculture produces high-quality food at affordable prices. Traceability, whether mandatory or voluntary, seems inevitable as consumers demand it and as it is possible to achieve. The appropriate response to these challenges is technological innovation improving crop quality and reducing production costs. To achieve this, future machinery must be increasingly automated, capable of detecting crop quality at various points in the production and processing system. Current efforts in agricultural automation - robotics, guidance, and mechanical harvest - are on the right track but are inadequate; necessary progress requires more investments from the government and the private industry. The public agricultural research programs in the U.S., consisting primarily of the USDA and Land-grant universities, no longer have the cadre of mechanization scientists and programs they once had. Crop quality detection will benefit greatly from emerging nanotechnologies and biosensors, but efforts to adapt sensors to machines at affordable costs are critical. While equipping machines with tracking capabilities needed for traceability should be technologically feasible, the challenge will lie in making tracking systems affordable and interoperable. Smart machines with these capabilities will be increasingly important for U.S. agriculture to compete globally and to meet consumers' demands for a safe and high quality food supply. However, this aim requires new public and private sector investments in research and development that are not currently available.
Keynote papers by H. Auernhammer (Germany) and I. De Alencar Nääs (Brazil) covered "the role of mechatronics in the traceability of crop and livestock productions."
H. Auernhammer began by noting that the new food production models arising from the evolution of the market and growing concerns about the healthfulness of agricultural products require continual monitoring of the productions and full knowledge of their history (traceability) from field to distribution. To accomplish these objectives it will be necessary to achieve wide adoption of innovative crop production technologies, such as precision agriculture, and the ensuing generalised application of mechatronics and hydraulics to agricultural machinery. Recent applications of mechatronics, in particular, have provided useful solutions to the technical and management problems of individual machines and of complete agricultural machinery chains, making it possible to continually monitor performance and optimize utilisation through remote service systems. Field robotics will play a fundamental role in this connection. The continual evolution of sensor technology and other electronic systems makes it possible to achieve traceability of productions, including the acquisition of crop and environmental data, as well as the integration of different types of information. The same can be said of sensor technology employed in the post-harvest phase for the non-destructive measurement of specific characteristics of the various products before they are placed on the market. There is therefore a need to: make agricultural machines increasingly intelligent; further develop precision agriculture methods; assure the collection of information at every stage of the production chain up until the point of sale, developing appropriate sensors and automation. Because the scope of traceability normally goes beyond the capabilities of individual research institutions or industries, it will be necessary to set up integrated projects that can enable to quickly develop applicable technical standards.
I. De Alencar Nääs started by noting that biosensors in livestock farming, based essentially on the miniaturization of electromechanical devices, have been employed since the mid 70s in various stages of production, from the monitoring of feeding to the monitoring of animal behaviour. Their application has considerably expanded over the past ten years. These are important and interesting developments with a view to applying the principles of traceability to the processes and events of the protein production chain. The latest generation of these technologies offers a true capability for storing data about the animals and their life, making it possible to authenticate specific protocols. Managing specific events, rather than a general scenario, as is the case of the crop production sector, will enable livestock farmers to evaluate losses and detect incorrect diagnoses, thereby increasing the efficiency and accuracy with which precision methods are deployed. The application of mechatronics to livestock production, through the use of biosensors and the electromechanical devices, makes it possible to improve data collection and hence to take more effective actions accordingly. In this connection, the Author supplies some interesting examples of the use of these technologies in specific sectors of livestock production.
"Measurement and data collection systems for agricultural equipment" was dealt with in a key note paper by J. F. Reid (USA).
J. F. Reid started by underlining that current sensors and data collection systems on agricultural equipment are fundamental elements required for the development of traceability. The current precision agriculture technologies, where adopted by producers, provide basic capabilities in data collection within the limited availability of sensors. However, despite the capabilities provided by these systems, agricultural traceability is clearly in the early phases of development. Agriculture will not have to independently develop all of the core elements for traceability. For example, data collection needs for traceability can benefit from the technology developments that are contributing to the continued information richness we have in society from advances in computer and electronic systems. Data processing and data mining tools are also becoming available for general use and can be adapted to agricultural needs. On the other hand, sensors are a limiting factor for traceability. One reason is that many crop and soil characteristics are difficult to measure and sensors that exist suffer from interferences to their response. Additionally, several important sensors for traceability have not been developed. This is especially true for sensors required for the measurement of the characteristics of individual fruit and vegetables. Unfortunately, during this time of increasing needs for sensors, research supporting the development of suitable sensors is clearly lagging. In addition: data collection systems will need to expand to match the level of data needed for the traceability systems; automated data transfer between elements of the systems will increase the effectiveness of traceability; permanent storage methods are needed to provide a record of the responses measured by traceability. Additional sensors will be needed to facilitate the measurement of responses and to provide automated data transfer. Increased funding will be required to lead to the development of these innovative technologies.
"System integration and certification. The market’s needs for clarity and traparency" was dealt with in key note reports by Y. Zaske (Germany) and L. Bodria (Italy).
Y. Zaske starts by reminding that: all parties involved in the food chain increasingly demand from the preceding supplier the proof of quality and safety of the products. The basis for this is an uninterrupted documentation of the product flow and of all process steps via the entire chain, from primary production, via transport, storage, processing, distribution, up to the consumer. Accordingly, the product safety has to be monitored by public or private inspections on the basis of national and/or EU regulations. Because of high risks, due to the complexity of production and large volumes of produce, the food industry was the first to establish comprehensive Quality and Safety (QS) Management Systems including Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Points (HACCP) Systems, generally in accordance with ISO 9000 ff. Industry and trade not only demand from primary producers that they supply large quantities of safe products of defined and constant quality. Increasingly they force farms or farm groups to prove this, e. g. by having their products certified (QS-seals, Bio-seals etc.), or by establishing their own QS-management systems, usually according to ISO 9000 ff., too.
L. Bodria underlines that: food production chains are becoming increasingly complex so that an appropriate standard for food safety is now of the highest priority for the consumers. Traceability - that can be defined as: "identification of the organisations and materials flows involved in the formation of a product unit that is individually and physically identifiable" - is an essential tool in order to provide the necessary level of information and to identify responsibilities in case of unsafe food products on the market. A better appeal of traceability is associated to a voluntary application of international standards within a national certification system monitoring the compliance of the required documentation. A voluntary traceability system will be an added value element contributing to enhance the competitiveness of the various products and a guarantee of a free and conscious commitment on the part of the organisation management. Club of Bologna, concludes the author, should then stimulate and encourage an appropriate development of automation in mechanization in order to allow suitable information collection storage, and transfer able to "track" the origin of agricultural products.
"Traceability: the role of mechanization for the control production: a challenge for the future" was the topic of a joint paper by R. Guidotti and A. Pagani (Italy).
R. Guidotti and A. Pagani began with a historical overview of the past 50 years of development of mechanization. Only in the '90s has the need emerged to confront the need for traceability by leveraging the enormous potential of electronics applied to agricultural machinery, as amply discussed in the preceding reports. This concept has not, however, been seized upon by farms which in most cases continue to operate without awareness of traceability and appreciation of its importance in human technical, financial and environmental terms. This continues to be true despite many great steps forward which have been taken toward increasing farmer awareness. Nearly all nevertheless require at present some form of support for broad-based training in this respect, so as to be able to meet the demands of consumers. At present and for a few years to come, however - especially in light of the fragmentation of farms - the authors believe that a concrete aid toward traceability might be found in the broad geographical distribution of contracting associations or companies that are particularly sensitive to these new issues and capable of addressing them.
After the presentations, both in Chicago and Bologna, the participants engaged in productive and in-depth discussions, after which they agreed upon the following:
Conclusions and Recommendations
- considering the growing importance of traceability as a tool for assuring the healthfulness of plant and animal food products by tracking their history, utilisation and sources, for the protection of consumers;
- recalling that the widespread adoption of traceability will require the involvement of the various governments and countries, to identify and define specific directives aimed at safeguarding the health of citizens;
- reasserting the consequent need to: develop specific informational processes on a large scale to: identify the crucial links within the various agri-food chains; promote drafting of international standards for the various productions, as well as techniques for tracking and recording the material and energy flows which characterise each production and distribution system;
- reaffirming the need for traceability to be defined within the wider context of the certification of farms;
- identifying in mechanization the key element for documenting the history of the individual productions that leave the farm, enter the agri-food chain and ultimately reach the consumer's table;
the participants unanimously recommend
1) that the Club of Bologna should:
- undertake to further examine, in special working groups, the various procedures for implementing traceability, defining the new technologies–based on appropriate sensors and electronic instruments as well as targeted information programs–necessary for collecting, storing and transferring the information acquired about the different agri-food productions, so as to offer the various countries useful models for drafting the pertinent legislation.
- collaborate closely with the industrial actors to define the necessary technologies, taking into account the specific technical and economic needs of the different countries with a particular eye to the emerging nations in which agriculture is, even today, the principal component of the economy;
- promote wide-ranging educational and training initiatives aimed at farmers, to enable them to comprehensively and efficiently implement traceability;
2) that agricultural machinery manufacturers should:
- urgently complete lines of commercial machinery equipped with appropriate instruments for tracking and acquiring information during the operations carried out on agricultural and livestock farms;
- act as complete and qualified partners in the negotiations with the other industries involved in the agri-food chain, in order to precisely define the level at which information about traceability is needed;
- ensure that the technology for traceability is appropriate to the needs and working conditions of farms, and does not entail increased workload but, on the contrary, encourages its use;
- guarantee that the cost of the new additional technologies can be borne by farmers and agricultural contractors, particularly with regard to the economic needs of the developing countries;
- complete their knowledge and expertise in the design, production, marketing and maintenance of the sensors, software and hardware necessary for managing the data, the communications, etc.
3) that the agricultural sector should:
elevate its level of knowledge in order to be prepared to operate with these technologies, acquiring a good command of their use;
4) that research institutions should:
undertake activities aimed at addressing the important and recurring technical challenges entailed by the objectives of traceability, working in close collaboration with the industrial and agricultural sectors.
Giuseppe Pellizzi
Honorary President CIGR
President Club of Bologna
"Max-Eyth-Medal on the Ribbon" awarded to CIGR Past President Bill Stout
On 9 and 10 October 2002, the "60th International Conference on Agricultural Engineering" was held in Halle, Germany, by VDI-MEG (Max-Eyth-Society of Agricultural Engineering). VDI-MEG is the professional section of the Association of German Engineers (VDI) for agricultural engineers. It bears the name of the founder of agricultural engineering as a distinct discipline in Germany, Max Eyth (1836-1906).
On October 10, CIGR Past President Professor Bill Stout received the Max-Eyth-Medal on the Ribbon. The President of VDI-MEG, Dr. Jens Peter Ratschow, decorated him with the medal "in appreciation of his great contribution to the technical development of harvest machines and in the field of renewable energies helping to improve the world food situation and to protect the environment, connected with his commitment in international agricultural societies."
Donated in 1950 in memory of Max Eyth, the medal is awarded to engineers in recognition of extraordinary individual achievements that constitute a historical part of the development of agricultural engineering.
In memoriam Derek Sutton
Born in 1937, Derek qualified as an agricultural engineer and worked for the Silsoe Research Institute (SRI) for most of his career. He took over various responsibilities in different overseas organisations seconded by FAO Headquarters in Rome and was an active member of CIGR Section III for many years. His sudden death on 9 September 2002 means a great loss to the international agricultural engineering community. His presence, counsel and friendship will be sadly missed.
In memoriam Jan Kornelis Gardenier
On October 26 October 2002 Jan Gardenier suddenly passed away at the age of 67 years. A member of the Dutch agricultural engineering association who paid special attention to the relation between research, advisory and consulting activities, and commercial companies, he was also internationally active in CIGR Section II. Jan Gardenier was one of the initiators of the international conferences on "Concrete for a Sustainable Agriculture" held in Noordwijkerhout (1989), Bologna (1993), Stavanger (1997) and Ghent (2002). We remember Jan Gardenier not only with respect for his activities for CIGR but also as a man of a brilliant mind and creativity, enthusiasm and personal attention for his colleagues. Jan Gardenier leaves behind his wife Adrie and three children.
A.A.Jongebreur, Wageningen, December 2002.
NEWS FROM Regional and National Societies
Head Department of Agricultural Machinery
