The Political Impact Of Digital Agricultural Technologies

Abstract

From farm to fork, digital technologies are being created and embraced throughout the agro-food system. Yet, political considerations brought about by these technological advancements are not given much thought in decision-making settings. This paper examines new technologies and big data systems in agriculture and evaluates some of the major problems that are emerging in the industry by drawing on critical social sciences. After providing an overview and introduction to the so-called "digital revolution," we quickly discuss how political economy might be used to comprehend the main issues facing the regulation of agricultural technologies and data systems. Data ownership and control, technology development and production, and data security are some of these issues. The degree to which the political and economic environment can be changed to promote greater fairness in agriculture is then examined using examples and literature, while also considering the structural obstacles and constraints. In doing so, we highlight that although there are notable systemic conflicts between agroecological practices and digital ag-tech development, we do not view them as mutually exclusive in and of themselves. The goal of this essay is to give decision-makers, practitioners, and academics from a variety of fields a timely evaluation of agro-food digitalization that takes political and economic aspects into account. By doing this, this essay adds to the policy and decision-making debates, which, in our opinion, are still mostly technocentric and give scant consideration to the ways in which digital technologies might specifically benefit agroecological systems