About Almería SmartAgriHub

Almería SmartAgriHub is an Agricultural Digital Innovation Hub integrating technology and business support for the digital transformation of intensive Mediterranean horticulture and fruit cultivation.

Agricultural Digital Innovation Hubs (Agri DIHs) are support and networking organizations whose objective is to increase the competitiveness of farmers and agri- businesses by accelerating the development and assimilation of digital innovations. Agri DIHs provide these services in close proximity to their end users and meet the needs of agricultural producers and related businesses and stakeholders in a specific region. They are a “one window” or a “one-stop shop” where enterprises – especially farmers, SMEs, start-ups and mid-cap companies – can access technology testing, business advice, market intelligence and networking opportunities.

Competence Centres (link to Competence Center section) inside or outside the region provide the knowledge, technology, infrastructure and facilities that underpin the technological transformation. These include (agricultural) research institutes at universities, experiment stations or farms, extension agencies or companies. End-users, e.g. farmers and their businesses, are the main target and beneficiary of the Digital Innovation Hubs.

Almería SmartAgriHub combines 3 concepts in one digital innovation hub:

 Precision Farming optimizes growth conditions by means of sensory analysis and precise application technology; Smart Farming  further develops Precision Farming and contributes chiefly to supporting decision-making, as information processing has become increasingly complex due to data fusion and analysis and can only be mastered using partial or complete automation; Digital Farming is the consistent application of the methods of “Precision Farming and Smart Farming”, internal and external networking of the farm and use of web-based data platforms together with Big Data analyses. (See DLC)

Almería SmartAgriHub is part of a larger network of agriculture digital innovation hubs established across Europe (link con mapa) which are supporting digital transformation in the European agri-food sector.

The University of Almería , COEXPHAL, and the Fundación CAJAMAR, three pillars of “science to society” research and innovation in the intensive Mediterranean horticulture and fruit cultivation sector, have joined together as not-for-profit founding members of the Almería SmartAgriHub.