INRA - Agricultural systems

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Cow grazing in a pasture of grasses-legumes-chicory in Lusignan. © INRA, Sandra Novak

News

09 Jul 2018

Securing forage systems by means of multi-species pastures

Improving the diversity of plants in the pastures grazed by dairy cows can increase the amount of grass ingested and hence the milk they produce. Livestock farms also increase their feed autonomy, a key element in the sustainability of dairy systems.

Drone. © INRA, MAITRE Christophe

Press release

27 Jun 2018

Digital technologies and plant production: predict and act

Connected hives, decision-support tools in viticulture, precision spraying, the use of drones, etc.; digital technologies now form part of the daily activities of farmers and presage a new vision for agriculture in the future. On 26 June 2018 in Montpellier, INRA, IRSTEA and the #DigitAg Institute for the Convergence of Digital Agriculture organised the Crossroads for Agricultural Innovation (CIAg) meeting on “Digital Technologies and Plant Production: Predict and Act”.

Grandes Cultures Experimental Farm—INRA Occitanie-Toulouse @INRA. © INRA

News

05 Oct 2017

Multiservice cover crops: a key pilar of the ecological transition.

The development of new methods and techniques is a central part of efforts to improve the economic performance and environmental friendliness of French agriculture. Of particular interest are strategies for reducing synthetic inputs (i.e., pesticides and fertilisers) and for boosting ecosystem services that will benefit farmers and everyday citizens alike. During the agricultural innovation symposium (CIAg) held October 4–5, 2017 in Toulouse, INRA presented a key tool that can be exploited by farmers: multiservicencover crops.

Un robot unique pour « scanner » les cultures en plein champ à l’Inra Occitanie-Toulouse !. © INRA

News

20 Sep 2017

INRA Occitanie-Toulouse develops a one-of-a-kind robot for "scanning” crops in the field

As part of the French Stimulus Initiative project PHENOME, a unique phenotyping robot was developed by INRA's Joint Research Unit for Agrosystems and Territorial Development (AGIR), INRA’s Joint Research Unit for the Mediterranean Environment and Modelling of Agro-hydrosystems (EMMAH), and ARVALIS. A prototype has just arrived at the Grand Cultures Experimental Farm, which is affiliated with INRA Occitanie-Toulouse. The robot will be linked with AgroPhen, a technological platform dedicated to field-based high-throughput phenotyping of major crop species.

Cereal field in the Brittany countryside. © INRA, CAUVIN Brigitte

Press release

27 Feb 2017

Reducing pesticide use in agriculture without lowering productivity

As part of the DEPHY-Ferme network, a major component of the French government’s EcoPhyto plan to reduce and improve plant protection product use, researchers from INRA working with the company Agrosolutions examined the relationship between pesticide use and cropping system performances¹ in terms of productivity and profitability.

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