60% of Farmers Say They Don't Have Good Enough Internet to Run Their Business

Sixty percent of farmers say they don't have enough internet connectivity to run their businesses, and that has influenced critical business decisions and overall profitability, according to a recent study funding by the United Soybean Board. Whether it's a reliable enough signal in the office to file tax paperwork, the ability to upload yield maps from the tractor to the cloud or turn off the irrigation pivot when it starts to rain, 59% of farmers that participated in the study said they want to incorporate more data into their operations, but many lack the connectivity to do it. Of the 2,000 row-crop, livestock and specialty-crop farmers that participated in the survey, 37% wanted to increase their use of data to make better decisions, while 19% want to use it to improve their efficiency and 10% cited cost savings. Among the study's other major findings:

• 78% of farmers don't have a choice in internet service providers.
• 40% of farmers have a fixed internet connection, while others rely on satellite connections.
• More than 90% access the internet on their smartphones, which they say is the most reliable.