John Deere creates technology to help smallholder farmers with tractors in Africa

Platform developed by John Deere called Hello Tractor. Source: ReutersPlatform developed by John Deere called Hello Tractor. Source: Reuters

John Deere's proposal to create an "Uber of tractors" for small producers. The service will be deployed in Africa and the company is betting that farmers will call tractors at the touch of a button on their smartphones. The objective is to increase the sale of tractors by the American company, but how can this be done if the majority of potential customers do not have the scale to justify the investment?

John Deere finds solution for connecting tractor owners to small farmers

The African continent is known for having a high level of poverty and a very mechanized agricultural sector. The solution that John Deere found was to connect tractor owners with small farmers. The platform developed for this is called Hello Tractor, where a small black box is installed under the tractor panel and in this way it is possible to order the tractor through an application.

Application developed by John Deere for its platform called Hello Tractor. Source: ReutersApplication developed by John Deere for its platform called Hello Tractor. Source: Reuters

Jacques Taylor, responsible for the business of the company that develops agricultural machinery in sub-Saharan Africa, told the Reuters website:

"We would like to see that every farmer has access to mechanization. The gap we have identified: how do we connect small farmers to tractor owners?"

John Deere promises to assist small producers in bank financing

Small producers suffer from low income, small properties and a lack of bank financing. According to John Deere, the company will provide assistance in terms of financing. The company told Reuters that it is possible to use data collected from the Hello Tractor platform to show details of how farmers are using the tractors. With this information, small farmers who have no credit history will be able to demonstrate that they have the capacity to handle bank loans and thus obtain approval.

Box under the tractor panel to send and collect information to the Hello Tractor platform. Source: ReutersBox under the tractor panel to send and collect information to the Hello Tractor platform. Source: Reuters

With the possibility of a loan, there is an increased chance that small producers will purchase John Deere tractors in the future. In other words, the company will help with the technology, allowing small farmers to grow their business, and in return the farmers will increase the number of tractors sold.

John Deere currently has 400 tractors with the Hello Tractor platform in Ghana and Kenya. Watch a video made by Reuters demonstrating the technology below:

Source: Reuters

Editor's recommendation: