Farm Data: Putting Trust Front & Centre

By Professor Tina Barsby

Trust. Difficult to gain, easy to lose. Trust is the biggest single issue inhibiting UK farmers from taking advantage of digital tools and the potential of data-led decisions believes Professor Tina Barsby

Digital agriculture companies, machinery manufacturers, and others across the supply chains have expressed frustration at the lack of engagement. The benefits of data use can really add to on-farm decisions such as what to grow, how to grow it, what inputs to use, return on investments, and perhaps even more critically, environmental concerns and benefits.

Tina explains, “My experience of working with and for farmers has convinced me that if UK agriculture is to get to the next level when it comes to sustainability, both economic and environmental, we must start comparing, benchmarking and then reacting to the wealth of data that is potentially available. That is why felt compelled to take a lead on this subject with the British Farm Data Council. Potentially helpful digital tools are at risk of being ignored because of a lack of trust in how farm data is taken, stored, profited from, and potentially shared with others. The British Farm Data Council was formed to address this lack of trust.

So how can trust be addressed? Tina chairs the British Farm Data Council, comprising seven individuals well known in the industry, most of whom are not experts in farm data, but are experts in putting farmers and growers needs at the forefront. The Council has put together some high-level Principles for working with farm data, which they believe most companies in the space should be able to sign up to. The ‘Principles’ will be interpreted differently in different sectors and Council members have undertaken significant dialogue with individual organisations, trade associations and other bodies, seeking their endorsement of them. Among those consulted are the National Farmers Union, the Agriculture Industries Confederation, ADAS, the Agricultural Engineers Association, the Association of Independent Crop Consultants, CropLife UK, the Agriculture & Horticulture Development Board, the Country Land and Business Association, DEFRA, the Food and Drink Federation, LEAF, the National Association for Agricultural Contractors, Red Tractor and the National Beef Pig and Sheep Associations.

Tina explains what came out of this consultation, “It is clear that data governance means different things to different people but almost everyone agreed that organisations have a responsibility to understand where the data comes from, how it is collected, where it is stored, and what organisations can and cannot do with it, without the express permission of the data owner.

“We are not talking about personal data here; that is covered by GDPR legislation. Neither are we talking about clearly defined commercial contracts covering data use, nor data that farmers are legally obliged to share, for example with DEFRA.

“Our Principles resonated with almost everyone we approached, and most felt that we were on the right path towards “what good looks like” - something that many felt was lacking around farm data usage”.

So what are these Principles and what do they mean? Figure 1 summarises the four areas that the Council believes a company working with farm data should be able to demonstrate and explain; data ownership (“Your data is your data”), data value (“We are clear in the value of data”), data security (“We keep your data safe”) and data terminology and transparency (“We strive to make data easy”).

How do you intend to use these highlevel Principles to address the trust issue?

Back to Tina; “Firstly, many companies handling farm data will already be complying with the Principles; for others, if they know what is expected of them when it comes to farm data governance, they can put in place or upgrade their terms and conditions to embrace these Principles in their handling of that data. To engender trust however, we believe we need a certification process that identifies those companies who are complying with the Principles. That way farmers will know who to choose as partners in their data journey.

The British Farm Data Council has also therefore been focussed on what that certification process might look like and has been speaking to certification bodies that might administer that process. This will be a voluntary scheme, and companies seeking certification will be required to complete a short questionnaire explaining how their systems fit with the Principles. There will be audit only in the case of complaints.

Tina concludes; “Our goal is to have the certification process up and running before the end of 2023. We believe this will increase the level of trust to the point where more farmers are prepared to take another look at how digital tools can help their farm and farm business, and equally importantly, provide the tools to define how we can reduce inputs, improve our soils, and generally define what sustainable farming in the UK really looks like.” www.britishfarmdatacouncil.org

The Data Originator, normally the farmer, owns and controls the data

The Data Originator can access, edit, delete, and migrate data easily

Data is not accessed or store data without explicit opt-in permission

Data is not shared or sold without explicit opt-in permission

There is clarity as to what parties are involved processing the data and why

WE KEEP YOUR DATA SAFE

The security of users’ data is essential

Appropriate data security standards for an organisation’s activities are adopted, and there is a clear explanation of why it is appropriate.

There are processes in place to maintain security of users’ data in the unlikely event of a data breach

WE ARE CLEAR ABOUT THE VALUE AND BENEFIT OF DATA SHARING Value will sometimes be monetary, and other times will be actionable insights

There is clear explanation from the outset regarding what raw data is used and how; and where value is generated, it is clear what that value is and who benefits

We clearly explain how we aggregate data, and what value it generates, and to whom

WE STRIVE TO MAKE DATA EASY

Simple naming conventions are adopted and common across the organisation’s tools

Organisations strive to allow systems to talk to each other, and to support other organisations and systems to share data using best practice and conventions

There is a proactive approach to providing training on data and data use, appropriate to the organisation’s data users

The organisation is accessible and responsive to requests, instructions, or complaints