Agriculture accounts for about 70% of global freshwater use, and as the population grows, so will demand for water. At the same time, global warming is increasing water loss through evapotranspiration, and intensifying the risk of drought in many regions. All this makes it vital to improve the efficiency of irrigation, to help farmers produce enough food for the population of more than 9 million predicted for 2050.
Scientists at the International Potato Center (CIP) are developing digital tools to optimize the use of water in irrigation. Using a combination of conventional and thermal cameras, they examine how potato plants react to water stress. They also developed open-access software called Thermal Image Processor (TIPCIP) to analyze those images, and created an early-drought-stress index to identify an indicator for when potato plants reach the threshold at which they need to be watered or their yields will be compromised.
