Exploring the future of farming with aerial crop spraying
A new drone, the T50, with the potential to revolutionize the agricultural industry, has arrived in Innisfil Ont.
On Wednesday morning, it was on display at Boris Horodynsky's farm. He's one of many local farmers interested in the new technology.
"We figured we'd get better application of our crop protection materials because of the vortex the drone creates, same as a helicopter or wind. We can get better penetration in the foliage and get better coverage of our materials into the foliage with less material," said Boris Horodynsky from Horodynsky Farms.
The T50 drone allows farmers to control it using a handheld remote while spraying crops from above, eliminating the need to track in the field.
- Download the CTV News app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates sent to your email inbox
Jenny Chen and her husband, Alex, act as the general distributors for DJI Agricultural Drones Canada. They use the farmland in Innisfil as their home base for testing and service.
"It has uniform spray to the crops, and it also makes sure the downfall wind that will blow the wind-down can effectively cover everywhere of the crops, including the back of the leaves, the intersection of the leaves and roots of the crops," said Chen.
Chen said similar models are already used in many countries worldwide. The new model can cover 50 acres of land in one hour.
Local farmers stopped by the farm on Wednesday to see the units themselves.
"No fuels, it's all battery-operated. It's going to be as long as we can get the regulations to get Transport Canada to give us faster approval to using these because it is definitely going to be beneficial to the environment," said David Acres Acres from Property Service.
The units cost about 37 thousand dollars with three chargeable batteries. That's about 10 per cent of the cost of a tractor.
Chen believes that this is not only the future of farming in Canada but also around the world.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NDP wants Liberals to scrap proposed election date change that could secure pensions for many MPs
The federal New Democrats want to amend the Liberal government's electoral reform legislation to scrap the proposal to push back the vote by a week and consequently secure pensions for dozens of MPs, CTV News has learned.
Supreme Court won't hear appeal in Montreal brainwashing experiments case
The Supreme Court of Canada will not review a Quebec ruling that bars people from suing the U.S. government in Canada over its role in notorious brainwashing experiments at a Montreal psychiatric hospital.
Drive one of these vehicles? You may pay 37 per cent more than average insurance costs due to thefts
As the number of auto theft incidents rises in Canada, so have insurance premiums for drivers, even the ones whose vehicles aren't stolen.
Teen pleads guilty to manslaughter in death of homeless man in downtown Toronto
One of eight teen girls charged in the death of a homeless man in downtown Toronto has pleaded guilty to manslaughter.
'I'm not wealthy': Ontario senior shocked she owes $40,000 in capital gains after gifting land
An Ontario senior who wanted to help her daughter and grandson eventually own homes one day decided to give them two lots on her property as a gift—but she didn’t know it would eventually cost her tens of thousands of dollars.
Fewer immigrants could have economic impacts as Canadians age: RBC
High levels of immigration are helping blunt the economic impact of Canada's aging population even though it's worsened challenges with housing affordability, a report by RBC says.
Police arrest 19-year-old suspect after Montreal triple homicide
Police have made an arrest following a deadly street fight that ended with three people killed in Montreal's Plateau-Mont-Royal borough last week.
How to save on food and drinks at your next sports game or concert
When Dianne Debarros and Tom Stitzel headed to a Toronto Blue Jays game last month, the couple figured dining at the Rogers Centre would not be cheap.
Video shows driver in Toronto frantically getting out of car being pushed by truck
A CP24 camera caught the moment a driver frantically got out of her car as it was being dragged by a truck on Avenue Road Wednesday afternoon.