KOTRA Publishes Strategic Report on Global Smart Farm Trends

[Asia Economy Reporter Suyeon Woo] KOTRA announced on the 7th that it has published a report on global trends and entry strategies in the smart farm sector, which is expanding mainly in developed countries.

This report is composed of three volumes: ▲Europe, ▲Japan, Americas, Middle East, and other regions, and ▲Russia, CIS, China, and Southeast Asia.

The report involved participation from 63 KOTRA overseas trade offices and introduces the smart farm market status and outlook in 49 countries, government policies, corporate trends and business models, Agtech venture capital and startups, smart farm projects and product cases, global companies, and examples of smart farm overseas market entry, while presenting entry strategies for Korean companies.

According to the report, smart farms, developed mainly in the US and Europe, are spreading worldwide. In the Middle East and CIS, vertical farms and smart greenhouses are used to overcome unfavorable natural conditions for agriculture. In Southeast Asia and Africa, agricultural financing through mobile apps and direct transactions of agricultural products contribute to increasing farmers' income.

Leading smart farm countries such as the US, Europe, and Israel are expanding their presence in developing country markets including CIS, Middle East, Southeast Asia, Latin America, and China through activities such as establishing local sales networks and intergovernmental cooperation.

Although smart farms are led by global companies from the US and Europe, recently, small and medium-sized startups and Agtech startups in each region are growing, showing signs of changing the market structure. Additionally, the entry of companies from other industries such as telecommunications and collaboration between companies are bringing various technologies, products, and business models to the market.

Smart farm technologies are spreading across the entire agricultural and livestock value chain, including smart agricultural machinery, agricultural robots, agricultural drones, smart greenhouses, vertical farms, management support software, supply chain management and food information systems, digital marketplaces, smart livestock housing management, and livestock monitoring.

Business models utilizing smart farm technology include franchising and technology licensing, agricultural consulting and funding and financial platforms using Agtech, agricultural data sharing platforms, and equipment rental. The real estate sector is also showing interest for purposes such as landscape improvement.

KOTRA suggested strategies for overseas market entry such as strengthening collaboration with companies and research institutions from different industries, developing products, services, and business models tailored to local customers, providing after-sales service and technical education, establishing local subsidiaries and collaborating with local partners, and preparing data related to efficiency improvement results.

Yang Guk-bo, KOTRA ICT and Project Director, said, "Due to climate change, a decrease in the agricultural population, and changes in food consumption patterns, the smart farm market will continue to grow," adding, "Our companies must actively pursue overseas market development."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.