The Fabulous Life of Plants – Dennis van der Wiel, Co-founder at Polariks – Advancing Technology That Can Detect Problems With Plant Health and Help Agricultural Farmers Manage Their Crops

Dennis van der Wiel, co-founder at Polariks (polariks.com/en/home), provides an overview of their groundbreaking technology that can help farmers assess their agriculture and improve their production.

Polariks is all about precision agriculture and remote sensing. Polariks has developed a precision agriculture analysis method that is directly based on Hyperspectral Imaging. Their innovative technology enables better harvest planning with increased efficiency in resources, as well as early detection of diseases. And, importantly, it significantly reduces overall inspection costs.

Dennis discusses the premise of his company, Polariks, that uses reflected light to determine properties. By using their technique of light they can determine whether a plant is sick or healthy, which ultimately helps farmers to make better decisions. Dennis explains how their technology can be integrated with drone and aerial tech to make the assessments regarding agriculture.

From strawberries to grapes, Dennis discusses how their robotic and stationary systems-implemented technology can help improve agriculture and prevent outbreaks. He states that humans can easily detect coloring and other issues that could be indicative of a plant's ailing health, but the real test comes from looking deeper, beyond what the naked eye can reveal. He outlines the infrared analysis that can assess photosynthetic activity.

The tech guru explains some of the overall goals that Polariks has in the works. He talks about the differences between outside farming and greenhouse growing. He states that greenhouses promote very homogeneous qualities and plant disease can spread quickly in a greenhouse environment. He explains that two plants side by side may both appear green and healthy, but one could already be well into a deep stage of sickness.

This is why the Polariks technology is so useful, because the Polariks technology can identify problems with plant health several weeks before even the most trained human eye can. He explains the advanced principles of their technology and how it generates much more information that can be utilized to understand plant health.

Dennis discusses modern farming techniques and he talks about the importance of regular monitoring over time, in regard to plant disease or plant health conditions, including the effects of drought. Finally, the farming technology expert provides some thoughts on predictive modeling and other advances that Polariks expects to promote as they develop their innovative technology and platform further.