increase font size
The BA Smart Sprayer reduces spray inputs and spray loss beyond crop canopies.
Claimed to have some of the most revolutionary spray technology to enter the Australasian market, the BA Smart Sprayer is now available in New Zealand.
Powered by Smart-Apply, a density-based spray system that utilises sensor technology, the machine provides horticulturalists with greater spray application.
The system utilises LIDAR sensor technology to detect the specific architecture of the canopy, which in turn creates a digital representation of the crop characteristics – including height, width, spacing and the density of each plant it passes. The digital information is then converted into a signal to each independently-controlled spray nozzle for instant application and adjustment of spray where required. This helps both reduce chemical use and achieves considerable cost savings.
Researched, developed and field-tested at the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture over the past decade, the BA Smart Sprayer has been proven to reduce spray inputs and spray loss beyond canopies.
“The system is proving effective in reducing up to 87% of airborne drift, delivering both environmental and economic sustainability,” explains John Dixon, operations manager at BA Pumps and Sprayers.
Dixon also suggests that the precision the system has significant long-term benefits for vineyards by using seasonal growth data and producing healthier plants, greater overall yields and cleaner, safer groundwater.
The system also lends itself for retrofitting to existing air blast spray equipment. It utilises an Android Tablet for display, which enables easy application. The interface allows the LIDAR sensor technology to work in tandem with GPS to determine ground speed and field position, assisting growers to gauge spray coverage and gather valuable data of their vines.
There is also the flexibility to revert to manual spraying applications if conditions require this approach.
BA Pumps and Sprayers, formerly known as Bertolini Australasia, will be conducting a series of demonstration events throughout the country to introduce the technology to New Zealand growers. Visit: https://www.basmartspray.co.nz for more details.
The market is in decline in the United States, Canada and Brazil. In Europe, sales are falling in Germany, France and Spain. Turkey is experiencing a sharp decline, whilst the economic strategies and policies implemented by India and China are driving purchases in both countries.
Areare Farms, a dairy operation in the Waikato region spanning multiple properties and milking 760 cows, now has Jenna and her brother Brian Rogers, the third generation of the family business, working alongside their parents Phil and Jackie.
Hamilton-based manufacturer SAM Machinery and Hawke’s Bay’s Tabula have joined forces to offer customers more ways to connect its spreaders with the technology they already use in the cab.
Installing two GEA DairyRobots R9500s marks a major step in the Coubrough family’s journey towards a more automated, future-ready farming operation.
Claas built its first variable chamber round baler - the Variant 100 - in 1996, so 2026 marks 30 years and the fifth generation of the Variant name, recently complemented by the new Cerex Series introduced in 2025.
Three men have been sentenced in District Courts after Ministry for Primary Industries prosecutions over animal welfare, food safety and cattle tracing offences.
Fonterra’s 2026 financial year was a year of delivery, with record volumes of milk collected, processed and shipped by the co-op.
OPINION: The Government's decision to reinstate agriculture and horticultural science as a standalone subject from Year 11 is the right one.
Dairy farmers, still holding onto their Fonterra shares despite switching milk supply elsewhere or exiting the industry, now face a stricter share sell-down requirement.
Hamilton-based agritech company Aimer Farming has completed a $3 million capital raise to support its next stage of growth, including a beef farming product due to launch in 2027.
When dairy manager Miriam Lauridsen learned the farm, she was joining held weekly health and safety meetings, she initially thought that was “a bit over the top”. Experiencing that culture changed her mind.
OPINION: The same mainstream media muppets that brought you Jacindamania in 2017 have been flat out pimping for the Opportunities…
OPINION: Your old mate reckons the atrocious way farmers in the UK are treated by their lords and masters in…
