A Technical–Economic Analysis Of Precision Spraying In Vineyard And Apple Orchard

A technical–economic analysis was conducted considering three different technological levels of spraying equipment for specialty crops case studies, using the results of precision spraying technologies reported in scientific literature. The application scenarios were referred to general protection protocols against fungal diseases adopted in vineyards and apple orchards in Central-Southern Europe. The analysis evaluated the total costs of protection treatments (equipment and pesticide costs), comparing the use of conventional air-blast sprayers (technological level L0), of on–off switching sprayers (L1), and of canopyoptimised distribution sprayers (L2). Average pesticide savings from 10 to 35% were associated to equipment L1 and L2, as compared to conventional techonology L0. Within the assumptions made, on grapevines, the conventional sprayer L0 resulted in the most profitable option for vineyard areas smaller than 10 ha; from 10 ha to approximately 100 ha, L1 was the best option, while above 100 ha, the more advanced equipment L2 resulted in the best choice. On apple orchards, L0 was the best option for areas smaller than 17 ha. Above this value, L1 was more profitable, while L2 never proved advantageous. Finally, in a speculation on possible perspectives of precision spraying on specialty crops, the introduction of an autonomous robotic platform able to selectively target the pesticide on diseased areas was hypothesised. The analysis indicated that the purchase price that would make the robotic platform profitable, thanks to pesticide and labour savings, was unrealistically lower than current industrial cost. The study showed that, in current conditions, profitability cannot be the only driver for possible adoption of intelligent robotic platforms for precision spraying on specialty crops, while on–off and canopy-optimised technologies can be profitable over conventional spraying in specific conditions.