IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Magazine - December 2021 - 210

PROBLEMS IN AGRICULTURE
Today, millions of people suffer from hunger due to the lack
of an available and stable of food supply, the main causes
of food insecurity [1]-[3]. An example of this is a situation
in which the inhabitants of a given territory do not have access
to enough food to maintain a healthy life [3]-[7]. Food
insecurity is also a growing concern worldwide because of
its serious consequences: the degradation of health, acute
malnutrition, increased risk of birth defects, and high mortality
[4], [7]-[10]. According to statistics from FAO, in 2017,
124 million people were food insecure in 51 countries [11].
Among the different factors that give rise to these conditions
are climate change, government policies, inequitable
land distribution, chronic poverty, and insufficiently developed
agriculture. Agriculture is a key activity in overcoming
famine and promoting economic growth [2], [3], [5]-[7],
[12]-[14]. Despite the fact that the practice of agriculture
depends on natural resources, its irresponsible use results
in environmental degradation: water scarcity, soil erosion,
greenhouse gas emissions, and deforestation [2], [15], [16].
In the most advanced countries, priority is given to the industrial
agricultural model that depends on hydrocarbons,
external energy, and agrochemicals, generating an unfavorable
impact on biodiversity and human beings [16], [17].
In contrast to first world countries, the agricultural economic
sector of many nations is constituted mostly of family
farms [18]. Family agriculture contributes approximately 50%
of crops globally [1]; in Latin America and Africa, their lands
correspond to 34.5 and 80%, respectively [16]. Nevertheless,
family agriculture production normally doesn't reach markets.
On the basis of this information, it has been established
that improving the performance of these small producers will
significantly increase the availability of food [16], [19], [20].
Given these circumstances, there is a need to adopt new
sustainable procedures and apply them to the agricultural
sector, with a focus on environmental conservation, profitability
through the appropriate use of resources, and promotion
of sustainable family-farming production [1], [2],
[5], [13], [15], [16]. Such methods form a safeguard against
food insecurity because of their economic viability and
guarantee of maintaining or increasing agricultural yields
for present and future generations [1], [13], [14], [16], [21].
With regard to government initiatives, most administrations
intended to guide their policies and financing plans in
favor of low-income farmers and to implement technology
in the fields [4], [5], [13], [17], [22]. However, the impact has
been minimal as small producers are unable to adopt the
innovations or they do so inappropriately [17], [23]-[26].
Due to the gap between small farmers and technology, the
scientific community is working on various proposals aimed
at optimizing and combating obstacles generated by climate
factors through the use of various technologies: WSNs, mobile
geographic information systems, geostatistics, and spectrum
analysis, among others [1], [16], [19], [20], [24], [27]-
[29]. The application of these techniques in different crop
processes constitutes a new trend of PA [30]-[32].
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Within PA, the use of WSNs is the most common technique
for improving of traditional agricultural processes
[30], [31], [33]-[35]. It is a noninvasive method that monitors
information regarding the number of resources, the
weather, and environmental factors. Data processing can
generate systems for predicting and modeling agricultureaffected
parameters to respond to, for example, climate
change [36]. As a consequence, appropriate agronomic
techniques that comply with the principle of sustainability
and establish a solution to food insecurity are designed for
a given crop. Therefore, the use of PA increases yields and
leads to a crop-management strategy, where investment in
agrochemicals is reduced and profits increase due to the
consequent productivity growth [30], [31].
The established problems support the indisputable importance
of WSNs in PA for the promotion of agriculture, based
on scientific evidence presented in literature reviews and surveys
analyzing the application of this technology and its effectiveness.
In light of the results and to provide continuity to
this technology's development, this article seeks to establish
the main technical characteristics of several articles and determine
their impact on and benefit for small producers.
TECHNOLOGY AND FAMILY-FARMING PRODUCTION
Within PA is a large amount of scientific evidence that reflects
the positive effects of WSNs. The application of this
method allows farmers to identify the interaction between
crop growth and soil/environmental factors. Its effectiveness
is manifested in decision making based on monitored data
regarding agronomic techniques suitable for a given crop as
well as for the protection of the environment and farm products
[26], [37]-[39]. However, in Latin American countries,
where agriculture is a major economic activity, most of the
agriculture-producing population belongs to rural sectors and
practices farming at a family level as a source of livelihood.
The biggest drawback for the rural agricultural sector
is the lack of synergy between popular advice and scientific
development organizations. This is an obstacle to the
inclusion of innovative, low-cost proposals for rural farmers.
Faced with this problem, governments have opted for
measures that promote domestic agriculture [1], [6], [16].
Nevertheless, technological solutions can be perceived incorrectly
if they are defined primarily as highly sophisticated
devices instead of as techniques that generate new capacities
to produce goods and services [5]. In the same area,
there is another impediment concerning education: small
farmers cannot acquire industrial electronic solutions due
to their high prices and the farmers' lack of access to the
training required for the use of such equipment [23].
METHODOLOGY
To obtain current information that shows the state of scientific
technological research on agriculture WSNs and their impact
on small producers, we have analyzed research documents
developed in various regions of the planet, with an emphasis
on Latin America. The literature review will be a starting point
IEEE GEOSCIENCE AND REMOTE SENSING MAGAZINE DECEMBER 2021
IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Magazine - December 2021

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