TY - JOUR
T1 - Review and assessment of crop-related digital tools for agroecology
AU - Anastasiou, Evangelos
AU - Kasimati, Aikaterini
AU - Papadopoulos, George
AU - Vatsanidou, Anna
AU - Gemtou, Marilena
AU - Kantelhardt, Jochen
AU - Gabriel, Andreas
AU - Schwierz, Friederike
AU - Matavel, Custodio Efraim
AU - Meyer-Aurich, Andreas
AU - Maritan, Elias
AU - Behrendt, Karl
AU - Moroder, Alma
AU - Bellingrath-Kimura, Sonoko Dorothea
AU - Pedersen, Søren Marcus
AU - Landi, Andrea
AU - Pesonen, Liisa
AU - Rojic, Junia
AU - Kim, Minkyeong
AU - Denzer, Heiner
AU - Fountas, Spyros
PY - 2025
Y1 - 2025
N2 - The use of digital tools in agroecological crop production can help mitigate current farming challenges such as labour shortage and climate change. The aim of this study was to map digital tools used in crop production, assess their impacts across economic, environmental, and social dimensions, and determine their potential as enablers of agroecology. A systematic search and screening process, following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses methodology, identified 453 relevant studies. The results showed that most digital tools are applied for crop monitoring (83.4%), with unmanned aerial vehicles (37.7%) and camera sensors (75.2% combined) being the most frequently used technologies. Farm Management Information Systems (57.6%) and Decision Support Systems (25.2%) dominated the tool categories, while platforms for market access, social networking, and collaborative learning were rare. Most tools addressed the first tier of agroecology, which refers to input reduction, highlighting a strong focus on efficiency improvements rather than systemic redesign. Although digital tools demonstrated positive contributions to social, environmental, and economic dimensions, studies concentrated mainly on economic benefits. Future research should investigate the potential role of digital technologies in advancing higher tiers of agroecology, emphasising participatory design, agroecosystem services, and broader coverage of the agricultural value chain.
AB - The use of digital tools in agroecological crop production can help mitigate current farming challenges such as labour shortage and climate change. The aim of this study was to map digital tools used in crop production, assess their impacts across economic, environmental, and social dimensions, and determine their potential as enablers of agroecology. A systematic search and screening process, following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses methodology, identified 453 relevant studies. The results showed that most digital tools are applied for crop monitoring (83.4%), with unmanned aerial vehicles (37.7%) and camera sensors (75.2% combined) being the most frequently used technologies. Farm Management Information Systems (57.6%) and Decision Support Systems (25.2%) dominated the tool categories, while platforms for market access, social networking, and collaborative learning were rare. Most tools addressed the first tier of agroecology, which refers to input reduction, highlighting a strong focus on efficiency improvements rather than systemic redesign. Although digital tools demonstrated positive contributions to social, environmental, and economic dimensions, studies concentrated mainly on economic benefits. Future research should investigate the potential role of digital technologies in advancing higher tiers of agroecology, emphasising participatory design, agroecosystem services, and broader coverage of the agricultural value chain.
U2 - 10.3390/agronomy15112600
DO - 10.3390/agronomy15112600
M3 - Review
SN - 2073-4395
VL - 15
JO - Agronomy
JF - Agronomy
IS - 11
M1 - 2600
ER -