Semtech’s LoRa® Chip-to-Cloud Platform Aids Sustainable Farming Efforts in Malaysia

By Tiera Oliver

Associate Editor

Embedded Computing Design

May 11, 2023

News

Semtech’s LoRa® Chip-to-Cloud Platform Aids Sustainable Farming Efforts in Malaysia

CAMARILLO, Calif.,– Semtech Corporation announced that Sustainable Hrvest Sdn Bhd (SH) has deployed LoRa-enabled sensors and LoRaWAN-based gateways across its Durian fruit farms in greater Malaysia.

Being one of most challenging trees to grow and harvest, the LoRa-enabled sensors now give Malaysian farmers access to real-time data and visibility on the health of their Durian trees and farms throughout growth cycle, from pre-harvest, harvest, until post-harvest.

Semtech's LoRa chipsets connect sensors to the Cloud and enable real-time communication of data and analytics. This direct management is designed to improve the efficiency and productivity of sustainable IoT use cases. The chip-to-Cloud sensor platform monitors the flow rate and pressure of irrigation systems to maintain soil moisture levels, while also tracking the nutrients in the soil.

The current 30 LoRa-powered farms in Malaysia with new plantations are expected to go live in the coming 12 months. With the ability to last up to four years without replacement, the IoT nodes designed by Sustainable Hrvest use LoRaWAN and implement LoRa’s low power, long range sensors.

“We founded this company to address the farming barriers and pain points here in Malaysia. To better serve our community, we knew that we needed to improve farming practices, reduce operational costs, and help farmers deliver better yields,” said Han Wei, co-founder, and chief technology officer at SH. “LoRa was an easy choice for our team. One of our biggest farms, Musang Valley Plantation, is more than 700 acres with 11,000 Durian trees. The land includes many steep hillsides which make managing the crops challenging. LoRa monitors the trees, alerts the farmer if there is an issue, and allows them to take immediate action. This response saves not only time, but also mitigates potential tree loss and revenue. Sustainable IoT and LoRa have completely overhauled farming in Malaysia.” 

For more information, visit: https://www.semtech.com/

Tiera Oliver, Associate Editor for Embedded Computing Design, is responsible for web content edits, product news, and constructing stories. She also assists with newsletter updates as well as contributing and editing content for ECD podcasts and the ECD YouTube channel. Before working at ECD, Tiera graduated from Northern Arizona University where she received her B.S. in journalism and political science and worked as a news reporter for the university’s student led newspaper, The Lumberjack.

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