5.2. CURRENT STATUS OF HARVEST AUTOMATION
As part of the 2021 and 2022 report, annual investments in automation were measured to determine the status of specialty crop automation across all crops. The share of grower respondents making investments in automation increased from approximately 60 percent in 2019 to more than 70 percent in 2022 (see Figure 32). In 2022, the average amount spent on automation per grower reached $500,000 annually. This shows considerable progress since last year’s report, where average investments in automation were around $350,000 to $400,000 per grower per year.
In addition, growers are optimistic about continuing to increase their spending on automation projects (see also Figure 32). For example, when asked how they expect project spending to change in the next three to five years, around 40 percent of growers predicted an increase of 10-50 percent, while around 30 percent expected it to rise by more than 50 percent. This shows a slight increase in automation confidence since last year.
INVESTMENTS IN AUTOMATION ARE EXPECTED TO BUILD ON HISTORICAL LEVELS AND CONTINUE TO GROW IN THE NEXT 3-5 YEARS
Average1 [$ thousands]
Historical Investments, 2019-2022 [% share of respondents]
~500
2022
29%
31%
18% 5% 11% 5%
2021
~450
7%4%5%
31%
27%
25%
~400
37%
27%
20% 7%4%5%
2020
2019
~350
37%
31%
24%
4%4%
None
<100K
100-500K
500K-1M
1-2M
2+M
2022 2021
Project spending in the next 3-5 years [% share of respondents]
Stable
13%
18%
Increase By 1-10%
15%
22%
42%
Increase By 10-50%
45%
31%
Increase By 50%
14%
Source: Grower survey, Western Growers, Roland Berger 1) Average calculated using only growers who have invested in automation Figure 32: Historical and anticipated investments in automation [percentage share of survey respondents]
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