Sencrop launches Solarcrop sensor and application for irrigation advice

April 14, 2022

By measuring solar radiation, the company’s new patented irradiance sensor solution and application aim for optimal irrigation-management. The activities of the startup in agricultural technology, founded in 2016, up to now mainly focused on the management of climatic risks, diseases and pests. With the introduction of Solarcrop, a third pillar is added: water stress management and irrigation management.

Optimal control of irrigation

The French agritech company notes that optimal control of irrigation is becoming increasingly important, because of the costs per millimeter and because of the availability of water. In order to be able to irrigate the right amount at the right time and in the right place, Sencrop deems it necessary to estimate the available amount of soil moisture for the crop as accurately as possible. The company therefore developed the Solarcrop irradiance sensor and the accompanying application, a measuring method that can determine a crop’s need for irrigation.

Precision agriculture for all

‘The environmental issue around irrigation is no longer in question. Already in 2010, the European Commission pointed out that Europe could reduce its water resources consumption by 40 percent, by optimizing irrigation systems’, Sencrop co-founders Martin Ducroquet and Michael Bruniaux explain. With the new Irricrop package, combining three of their sensors, the company wants to offer a simple installation tool, helping farmers them to monitor the useful reserve in water for their crops and therefore to anticipate the needs in water as accurately as possible. ‘This evolution of our offer is completely consistent with our initial mission, the democratization of precision agriculture’, the co-founders conclude.

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