INDUSTRY news
5G Takes Root: Virgin Media O2 Business kicks off Private Network trials at Worcestershire ‘Farm of the Future’
Virgin Media O2 Business and River Severn Partnership Advanced Wireless Innovation Region (RSPAWIR) announced a new collaboration to trial cutting edge 5G connectivity at Overbury Farms on the border between Worcestershire and Gloucestershire. By installing a portable 5G Private Network on the farm, this trial will showcase innovative use cases, laying the groundwork for the connected farms of the future and demonstrating the transformative power of technology in crop protection and environmental preservation. Overbury Farms, a 1,600-hectare award- winning estate and the chosen trial site, has long been a leader in digital farming, utilising connected tractors, Internet of Things (IoT)-enabled weather stations, and real-time data analytics. The farm will now serve as the ultimate testbed for the portable 5G Private Network, covering a 1-kilometre trial area to unlock advanced applications for farming, driving the future of agriculture. This project is part of the UK Government’s initiative to demonstrate the potential of 5G technology across the UK. The River Severn Catchment is one of the 10 5G Innovation Regions chosen by the Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT) to receive £3.75 million in funding; this will be used to demonstrate the benefits of wireless technology for agriculture, water management and the public sector, managed by Shropshire Council. The portable Private Network, which will be installed at Overbury Farms this month, aims to showcase the benefits advanced connectivity can bring to the agricultural sector. Several 5G-enabled solutions will be used aimed at improving farm efficiency and animal welfare, while reducing the impact on the environment. This includes: n Outdoor and indoor AI-enabled pest observation: Connecting existing cabbage stem flea beetle camera traps and deploying new aphid and ladybird trained camera traps, allowing the farm to take early action and reduce the amount of pesticides used to control potential infestations.
n IoT water quality checks: Sensors will be installed to remotely identify the level of nitrates in the local stream, which combined with Meteoblue’s weather model can help determine fertiliser application timings to gain optimal soil moisture conditions and monitor what others do to the water courses running through the farm n Water level troughs: Monitoring water levels in the livestock and racehorse troughs, saving time from physical observations and ensuring water is always available for the animals. n Liquid fertiliser levels: Preventing manual checks for fertiliser tanks, the monitors will trigger alerts for any potential leakages to quickly address the leak and help reduce the environmental impact of any such event, as well as reducing checking time for stock control n Weather station: Ensuring yield quality by collecting information on soil moisture, wind speed, rain gauge and temperature. Correlated with weather forecasting and disease modelling to increase accuracy and support the farm in daily decision making. Committing to share the findings from this innovative trial, Penelope Bossom, Overbury Farms’ owner, commented: “This exciting collaboration will give us the opportunity to test a variety of sensors collecting data over a private 5G network. The benefits of better information, warnings and the collation of data will provide new opportunities to our sector. Hopefully, we will overcome the constraints of variable connectivity to show the benefits of the network technology for a business in the countryside.” Paving the way for further 5G-driven innovation in the agricultural sector, Overbury is a member of AgritechE, an organisation that brings farming experts together to foster new innovations in the Agritech space. They’ve also been an AgriEPI (now the UK Agri- Tech Centre) satellite farm.
Penelope Bossom, owner, Overbury Farms
n Virgin Media O2 Business and River Severn Advanced Wireless Innovation Region (RSAWIR) announce a new partnership to showcase the benefits of 5G connectivity in farming. n A portable 5G Private Network will be installed at Overbury Farms, where trials using cutting edge technology like AI cameras and IoT devices will take place. n Showcasing a farm of the future, the trials aim to boost farm efficiency, enhance animal welfare and reduce environmental impact. n This work is part of the UK Government’s initiative to demonstrate 5G technology in rural regions, with RSPAWIR being one of the 10 areas chosen by the Department for Science, Innovation, and Technology (DSIT) to receive £3.75 million in funding.
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May 2025 Volume 47 No.2
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