The Rising Influence of Rising Affluence

[DewDiligence]

Cargill enters the fray for precision planting services:

http://online.wsj.com/articles/cargill-launching-data-analysis-service-for-farmers-1410201672

Cargill Inc. is developing a software service that guides farmers on how to plant crops, a foray that pits the agricultural conglomerate against a host of rivals seeking to harvest reams of data to sell "prescriptive planting" technology in North America.

Cargill began selling the service in two U.S. states this summer and plans a broader push over the next several years as it seeks to help farmers produce larger crops and navigate weather shifts, officials said.

The tool, called NextField DataRx, will compete with data-analysis services from companies including Monsanto Co. and DuPont Co., which seek to apply new number-crunching techniques to the age-old variables of raising crops, including soil content, seed type and temperature fluctuations.