The campaign’s goals are to reaffirm European dairy’s reputation for high-quality products.

In 2024, Irish dairy exports to Asia surpassed €440 million, highlighting Ireland's growing role as a key supplier of high-quality dairy products

To build on this success, the European Union and Ireland have launched a €3.2 million campaign, titled “European Dairy – Ireland, Where Nature Meets Science”. The campaign, co-funded by the EU, is designed to strengthen partnerships in Asia and ensure sustainable, traceable dairy ingredients for the region's growing nutrition market. Running until 2028, it will focus on building supply resilience and fostering long-term trade relationships in Singapore, China, and Vietnam.

Singapore was chosen as the regional hub for the campaign due to its central role in Asia’s food innovation ecosystem. The country’s world-class food safety standards and research infrastructure make it an ideal location to connect Europe’s dairy industry with Asia’s demand for sustainable ingredients. This collaboration also allows Europe to meet the evolving needs of Asia’s volatile global food market.

Sarah McGrath, Ambassador of Ireland to Singapore, said, “This campaign is a symbol of Ireland’s commitment to strengthening the bridges between Europe and Asia. By launching in Singapore, we are reinforcing not only a vital trade relationship but also our shared pursuit of innovation, research, and sustainable development in food. Ireland’s expertise in science-driven agriculture, combined with Asia’s leadership in food innovation, creates an opportunity to deepen trust and collaboration across sectors. This initiative reflects the spirit of partnership that will define the future of our cultural and economic ties.”

Bord Bia, the Irish Food Board, is spearheading the campaign, aiming to connect Irish producers with partners in key global markets. With offices in locations such as Singapore, Shanghai, and Tokyo, Bord Bia facilitates trade links and drives long-term collaborations across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and beyond.

Lisa Phelan, Director for Southeast Asia and Australia at Bord Bia, said, “Ireland’s grass-fed, sustainably produced dairy, supported by Origin Green, our pioneering national food and drink sustainability programme, brings provenance, quality, and science-driven innovation—but we cannot achieve impact alone. By collaborating with Singapore, which combines technological expertise, research capabilities, and regional market knowledge, we can secure Asia’s nutrition future with dairy that is trusted, traceable, and future-ready. This campaign exemplifies how Europe’s strengths and Asia’s innovation ecosystem can come together to drive sustainable, long-term food solutions."

Ireland leads Europe in sustainable dairy production, with 90% of its herds grass-fed, a unique distinction globally. Additionally, 95% of Irish processors are enrolled in Origin Green, the independently verified sustainability programme, highlighting Ireland’s commitment to quality and traceability. The country is ranked second globally in the Food Security Index, further reinforcing its role as a reliable supplier.

The campaign’s goals are to reaffirm European dairy’s reputation for high-quality products, provide traceable ingredients, and strengthen connections between Singaporean firms and European innovation pipelines.

The company's innovative technology focuses on preserving pollen for future use.

PowerPollen, an agtech company based in Iowa, has unveiled its latest technological advancement: autonomous pollination robots designed to address pollination challenges in crops like corn, wheat, and rice

The company's innovative technology focuses on preserving pollen for future use, which helps growers adapt to environmental challenges such as extreme weather and droughts, factors that can disrupt seed production.

Founded in 2015 by Jason Cope and Todd Krone, PowerPollen uses a patented method to store pollen, ensuring its viability for extended periods—a crucial advantage given that pollen can survive in the natural environment for only a short window, from five minutes to an hour. This preserved pollen can then be applied to crops when needed, improving the chances of successful pollination.

The company's autonomous robots, introduced during a field demonstration, are battery-powered and equipped with a precision sprayer, GPS for tracking, and machine vision to help navigate farm rows. These robots can operate in fleets and are adaptable to both large fields and smaller farms (down to five acres). This development opens up possibilities for future functionalities, as the robots can collect valuable data during pollination, further improving efficiency and accuracy.

As extreme weather events such as droughts or heavy rains impact pollination, PowerPollen’s robots allow farmers to apply preserved pollen during the key reproductive phase. This precision helps counter disruptions, ensuring that crops are properly fertilized despite adverse conditions.

PowerPollen’s expansion goes beyond corn; the company is actively working on wheat and rice hybrid seed production, aiming to make these crops more cost-effective and profitable for farmers. Despite a downturn in venture capital investments in agtech, the company continues to drive innovation, with €22.5 million in recent funding to support its future growth.

Jason Cope emphasised, "Venture capital money is a little allergic, if you will, right now to agtech, but agtech is a foundational aspect of how we feed the world."

China produces close to 350 mn tonnes of fruit every year—around a third of the global output.

China produces close to 350 mn tonnes of fruit every year—around a third of the global output

With domestic demand on the rise, especially from the expanding middle and lower-middle classes, improving fruit production through technology has become a national priority.

The government’s “2024–28 Four-Year Smart Agriculture Plan” encourages the widespread adoption of artificial intelligence, big data, satellite navigation (Beidou), and national agricultural data systems to boost food security. Farms are now using a combination of precision agriculture, automation, and sensor technologies linked to IoT networks for real-time monitoring and control.

In Guangdong and Maoming, 5G-enabled sensors monitor key variables like soil moisture, pH levels, temperature, and pest presence. This data is used to automatically manage irrigation and fertilisation. Companies like Nongbo Innovation and Haisheng Group have introduced IoT systems that assign QR codes to individual trees, improving traceability from farm to consumer.

China also makes use of more than 200 agricultural drones for surveying and spraying. Firms such as XAG, FJ Dynamics, and EAVision are developing smart robots capable of autonomous driving, spraying, and harvesting. Trials are underway on robotic pruning platforms that use machine learning and computer vision to work on apple trees, grapevines, and cherry orchards. With LiDAR-camera fusion, these systems can identify fruit with millimetre accuracy, enabling precise automated harvesting. At China Agricultural University, researchers have created AI-powered smart glasses with augmented reality to help identify diseases, guide pruning, and reduce human error.

Blueberry farming has seen major growth, increasing more than tenfold in the past decade. By 2024, China had over 80 hectares in cultivation, producing over 500 tonnes, making it Asia’s largest blueberry producer and one of the biggest globally. Shandong has bred eight new varieties that ripen earlier, resist disease better, and yield 10% more. AI and big data are being used to speed up breeding through high-throughput phenotyping.

In Huaining, Anhui, smart greenhouses use IoT systems to automate climate and soil conditions. Just one operator can manage tens of thousands of plants using mobile monitoring, bringing harvests forward by two months and doubling yield compared to open fields. In Qidong, Jiangsu, a 21.3-hectare high-tech farm with controlled CO₂ levels and IoT sensors brings in around 200 mn yuan (US$28 mn) annually with only three workers. Langxi, also in Anhui, has 3.3 hectares of greenhouse blueberries with full 5G control for irrigation and nutrition via mobile devices.

Research is ongoing into drones that use the YOLO computer vision model to detect fruit and bushes, improving yield forecasts, sampling, and logistics.

By 2030, China’s blueberry acreage is expected to reach 120 hectares with production surpassing 900 tonnes. The country is also eyeing expansion into value-added products like juice, powder, and cosmetics, as well as increased exports to Europe and the Middle East.

Enhance farming with nitrogen-fixing techniques.

BioConsortia, Inc., a pioneer in microbial solutions for sustainable agriculture, has announced a fresh US$15mn funding round led by long-standing investors, including Otter Capital and affiliated funds

Marcus Meadows-Smith, CEO of BioConsortia,“This investment, one of a series of recurring financings from our internal investors, reflects their deep confidence in BioConsortia’s science, strategy, and commercial momentum. “Their investments total US$95mn and bring BioConsortia to this exciting moment in the company’s history.”

The latest funding will accelerate the global rollout of Always-N, the company’s next-generation nitrogen-fixing seed treatment for industrial corn. It will also support the continued development of BioConsortia’s microbial research platform at its Davis, California headquarters.

Designed to reduce farmers’ dependence on synthetic fertilisers, Always-N allows for consistent crop yields while lowering environmental impact. Applied as a seed treatment, it is the only nitrogen-fixing biofertiliser that combines advanced gene editing with a shelf life of more than two years.

“Synthetic nitrogen fertilisers are essential to modern agriculture, but their overuse comes at a high environmental cost,” Meadows-Smith explained. “With Always-N, we offer a powerful and sustainable alternative—backed by cutting-edge science and engineered for real-world performance.”

Roughly 50% of synthetic nitrogen applied to crops is lost to runoff or breaks down in the soil, releasing nitrous oxide—a greenhouse gas with 300 times the warming potential of carbon dioxide. As both regulatory and market pressures increase for more climate-smart farming practices, interest in sustainable solutions like Always-N is rapidly rising.

After a successful commercial launch in New Zealand in 2024, Always-N is preparing to expand into broader markets across the Americas. BioConsortia has partnered with key global players, including The Mosaic Company, to introduce the product into row crop systems. The latest investment will be used to scale up production, build product inventory, and enhance market reach in time for the next planting season.

Always-N is the result of BioConsortia’s proprietary research platform, which includes tools like Advanced Microbial Selection (AMS), GenExpress, and GenePro. These systems help discover, refine, and optimise beneficial microbes that improve nitrogen fixation, crop resilience, and product longevity.

Beyond Always-N, the company is advancing a strong pipeline of microbial biostimulants, fungicides, insecticides, and nematicides—all designed for long shelf life, ease of use, and reliable field performance.

Since its inception in 2014, BioConsortia’s solutions have shown proven effectiveness across different crop types, climates, and soils, offering farmers practical tools for more sustainable and productive agriculture.