Conceptual framework of a decentral digital farming system for resilient and safe data management

Digitization in agriculture is rapidly advancing further on. New technologies and solutions were developed and get invented which ease farmers’ daily life, help them and their partners to gain knowledge about farming processes and environmental interrelations. This knowledge leads to better decisions and contributes to increased farm productivity, resource efficiency, and environmental health. Along with numerous advantages, some negative aspects and dependencies risk seamless workflow of agricultural production. Therefore, this study presents the state of the art of digitization in agriculture and points out vulnerabilities in digitized farming processes. The most important are the lack of interoperability and the dependency on internet connection. Hence, requirements are posed to meet these vulnerabilities in future IT (information technology) systems resulting in successive levels of resilience that cover the individual needs of farms adjusted to their mobile and landline internet supply. These findings are incorporated in a conceptual framework for a highly digitized fictive farm. Resilience is ensured by decentralized storage and computing capacities and internet independent communication networks including cooperation with machinery rings and contractors.