BASF : Digital Farming and Pessl collaborate to boost fruit and vegetable production

• Global research and development collaboration
• Combined focus on pest monitoring and management in fruits and vegetables
• Pest recognition and monitoring service for grapes and pome fruit from 2022

Cologne, Germany, and Weiz, Austria, May 26, 2021 - BASF Digital Farming and Pessl Instruments have signed an agreement to collaborate globally on R&D activities to improve pest management in fruits and vegetables and thus boost the production.

The collaboration will pair the unique hardware and software capabilities of Pessl, specifically its automatized iSCOUT^® pest trap, with the image recognition and analysis of BASF Digital Farming's market-leading xarvio™ SCOUTING app. By combining the experience, precision data and advanced digital expertise offered by both companies in pest management, famers for the first time will get near real-time, field level observations to further optimize crop production.

The first project of the collaboration focusses on the development of comprehensive pest monitoring and modelling for grapes and pome fruits, specifically apples, targeting the activities of the grape berry moth and codling moth. This project began in early May 2021 and aims to create a fully automated pest recognition and monitoring service, which will initially be linked to xarvio SCOUTING in Argentina, Brazil, Europe and India.

The second planned joint activity will look extensively at the row crops of soybean, cotton and corn. It will focus on the observation and modelling of stink bugs, corn earworm and fall armyworm.

'One of the biggest challenges in fruit and vegetable production is getting timely field level pest monitoring data that can accurately identify the damaging or treatable stage within a pest life cycle,' says Bjoern Kiepe, Head of Agronomy xarvio, BASF Digital Farming. 'By connecting xarvio SCOUTING's image recognition and analysis with Pessl's automatized iSCOUT pest trap we can solve this problem together. Precision farming helps ensure the more efficient use of crop protection applications, which is good for farmers, sustainability and biodiversity.'

'With monitoring pests, we aim to not just note the type of insects and the number of plants infected, but to help prevent the damage occurring in the first place. Precision farming equipment, backed with artificial intelligence, enables a more detailed focus on in-field stresses and supports better decision making. With the fully autonomous solar powered insect trap iSCOUT we can monitor the pest risk 24/7, process this data and send it in near real time to xarvio SCOUTING for image recognition. This provides farmers with a stepping-stone to improved insect monitoring and better control anytime, anywhere,' concludes Gottfried Pessl, founder and CEO of Pessl Instruments.

BASF Digital Farming and Pessl Instruments expect the pest recognition and monitoring service for grapes and pome fruit will be available from 2022.

Contact BASF Digital Farming: Contact Pessl Instruments:

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About xarvio Digital Farming Solutions - a brand by BASF Digital Farming GmbH

xarvio Digital Farming Solutions is at the forefront of the digital transformation of agriculture, optimizing crop production. xarvio offers digital products, based on a global leading crop model platform, which deliver independent, field-zone-specific agronomic advice that enables farmers to produce their crops most efficiently and sustainably. xarvio products SCOUTING, FIELD MANAGER and HEALTHY FIELDS are being used by farmers in more than 100 countries. xarvio FIELD MANAGER is used by 60,000 farmers (total area of more than 7 million ha) in 17 countries, and xarvio SCOUTING is used by more than 4 million farmers and consultants. For more information please visit www.xarvio.com or any of our social media channels.

About BASF's Agricultural Solutions division

With a rapidly growing population, the world is increasingly dependent on our ability to develop and maintain sustainable agriculture and healthy environments. Working with farmers, agricultural professionals, pest management experts and others, it is our role to help make this possible. That's why we invest in a strong R&D pipeline and broad portfolio, including seeds and traits, chemical and biological crop protection, soil management, plant health, pest control and digital farming. With expert teams in the lab, field, office and in production, we connect innovative thinking and down-to-earth action to create real world ideas that work - for farmers, society and the planet. In 2020, our division generated sales of €7.7 billion. For more information, please visit www.agriculture.basf.com or any of our social media channels.

About PESSL Instruments GmbH

For more than 36 years, Pessl Instruments has been offering tools for informed decision making. Pessl Instruments operates in 65 countries with over 15 own subsidiaries and offers a complete range of wireless, solar-powered monitoring systems that support almost all communication standards roofed under the METOS^® brand are available to farmers and other clients worldwide. With more the 60.000 systems and over 100.000 users the company is one of the leading independent industry suppliers. The systems, along with the online platform and mobile application FieldClimate, are applicable in all climate zones and can be used in various industries and for various purposes - from agriculture, both crop production and animal breeding, to smart cities, golf courses, research, hydrology, meteorology, flood warning and more.

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