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Writer's pictureMaxime Dumont

We Spent The Summer In The Fields, Here's What We Accomplished

Updated: Nov 24, 2022

Making the most of a short growing season is our top priority here at Picketa Systems. Our goal is to build technology that will bring value to everyone involved in growing a crop. We bought a pair of work boots and got as close to the action as possible, learning about the needs of our customers through direct collaboration with them. Here is a summary of what we did during the 120 days of summer 2022.

Picketa Systems
Picketa Systems' Founders
 

We Tested Our Technology With Early Adopters

As we entered the 2022 growing season, our technology had reached the MVP (minimum viable product) stage. We were ready to test the main features with various potato growers, agronomists, and service providers across Atlantic Canada. Perhaps, the most exciting part about building new technology is deploying it to customers and getting honest feedback in exchange. Our technology was used on 62 different farms throughout the season, and the insights we gained from these large-scale trials are genuinely priceless. Equipped with a new sense of what our users need, the design team is ready to have a productive off-season. Here is a snapshot of our operations in the last two seasons.

Year

Samples

Farms

Vendors

Acres

Growth

2021

600

9

0

2,247

-

2022

2200

62

7

12,073

4x

 

We Solved A Bottleneck

Potato Plant Tissue Analysis
Maxime Scanning a Potato Leaf

There wasn't a dull moment with us this summer. The influx of information kept the agronomist and growers on the edge of their seats all summer long, never waiting long for us to tell them what to do next! Meanwhile, laboratory validation data was lagging weeks behind, exposing how the shipping and logistics of sending samples away for analyses prevented growers from making optimal decisions. It's not surprising that we were able to promptly provide mass analyses to a vast region, immediately solving plant tissue analyses' biggest bottleneck, long shipment delays that no one can control.

 

We Collected Plant Samples, A Lot Of Them

Collaborating with such a large amount of growers, agronomists, and stakeholders in the agriculture industry was an opportunity for us to collect more data to improve our technology. Our technology leverages the power of machine learning and big data to perform plant tissue analysis. Exposing our system to a larger number of plant samples means we can increase our nutrient evaluation models' reliability and accuracy. Continuously improving our dataset and ensuring we offer our clients reliable information is Picketa Systems' top priority. Here is a diagram that shows where samples were taken in the last two years of operation.

On the Left 2021's Plant Sampling's site; On the Right 2022's Plant Sampling's Site

 

We Hired New People

Over the last year, we have been growing the Picketa Systems team steadily. What started with four founding partners turned into an entire team of young people working towards making something better for the agriculture industry. We've seen a considerable increase in production since we started hiring people and Picketa Systems benefitted greatly from their employee's hard work, creativity, and desire to make an impact. This summer, we have made three new additions. We welcome William, Avery, and Pat to the team. Avery and William, two 3rd year computer scientists from UNB, are working toward making our technology accessible and easy to operate. As a recent engineering graduate, Pat will work with the collected plant data and our technology infrastructure to improve our technology and deliver accurate and consistent analysis to growers.

Picketa Systems
Picketa Systems' Team (missing Xavier and Rahul)
 

What Is Happening Next?

With some wind in our sails, we aim to continue developing the best possible technologies for growers and ag businesses to optimize their nutrient uses. If you wish to explore Picketa Systems' product, please visit our website, and stay tuned for some exciting news coming soon!


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