Agricultural Robots Market Size, Share, Industry Growth, Forecast and Outlook (2024-2031)

Agricultural Robots Market is segmented By Type (UAV/Drone, Milking Robots, Driverless Tractors, Unmanned Ground Vehicles & Robotic Arms), By Application (Harvesting, Soil Management, Crop Protection, Dairy Management, Others), By Product Type (Field Crops, Fruits & Vegetables, Dairy, and Others), By Farm Environment (Outdoor, Indoor), and Region (North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa) – Share, Size, Outlook, and Opportunity Analysis, 2024-2031

Market Report Overview

The Agricultural Robots market size was valued at USD 6,928.63 million in 2021. It is forecasted to reach USD million by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 20.80% during the forecast period (2024-2031).

Robotics and automation are the most focused technologies in the present-day agriculture sector. The integration of robotic solutions in farming practices is posing lucrative growth avenues globally. The rising demand for agricultural products coupled with the increasing population is forcing governments and farming communities towards high-productivity farming practices such as precision farming and smart agriculture. Furthermore, the declining arable land and scarcity of agricultural inputs are also motivating the use of sustainable farming practices that adhere to the ‘law of minimum’ in food production. Robotics evolved as a promising solution for sustainable farming owing to their timely and accurate performance in a wide array of crop production activities. Robots are integrated into various forms such as drones, robotic arms, autonomous harvesting machines, and driverless tractors. This novel farm equipment helps improve the quality and quantity of products through their high capacity, precise, fast, and automated operations in soil management, harvesting, and crop protection activities.

Market Scope

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Market Dynamics 

Technological advancements in robotics technology

Technological advancements in the fields of robotics and data connectivity is the key factor driving the growth of the agricultural robot market globally. The effective performance of robotic solutions mostly depends on control solutions and supporting technologies such as information and communications technology, artificial intelligence, and the internet of things. The rapid developments in flexible designs of these technologies that enable the effective operation of robots are driving the growth of the agricultural robot market. These data-driven technologies enable effective gathering and analysis of data, thereby supplementing the high efficiency of farming practices in precision agriculture. Also, hardware product design is witnessing rapid growth in most robotic categories. For instance, Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) also known as agricultural drones are one of the key robotic solutions used in farming practices. Most of the large farm owners in Europe and North America region are shifting towards autonomous farms and high-tech greenhouses. These farms use drones for fertilization, pest monitoring, yield monitoring, plant growth monitoring, and several other applications. The underlying research activities laid by manufacturers and the developments made in these products are supporting the market growth. Focus is laid on the improvement of flying capacity, high altitudes, and widening the spectrum of applications in agriculture.

However, the high cost of products is one of the major constraints in the global agricultural robot market. Agricultural drones, driverless tractors, and harvesters retail at very high costs. Driverless tractors in particular are recorded at significantly higher prices, as much as 60% than that conventional tractors. Greenhouses, hydroponic farms, and other protected farming environments are highly turning towards automation with robotics to ensure high-quality of produce. Moreover, the steadily declining prices of sensors and imaging devices will lower the overall cost of robotic arms shortly.

Market Segmentation Analysis

Agricultural drones segment for the highest share in the global agricultural robots market

Agricultural drones are Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) that are designed for use in several farming operations. These flying machines equipped with sensors, digital imaging, and mapping technologies help enable optimize agriculture operations, monitor crop growth, and enhance overall production. Also, large-sized drones with weight-carrying capacity are used in planting and spraying applications. Drones evolved as a vital piece of farm automation and robotic technologies owing to their potential benefits in traditional farm practices and advanced monitoring applications. Agricultural drones find scope in conventional agricultural applications such as chemical spraying, harvesting, soil management, and weed plucking. The fast and precise performance of drones has driven their use in these activities. Beyond these applications, drones are also used in advanced farm applications such as crop health and growth monitoring, pest identification, yield monitoring, and soil moisture monitoring.  A wide array of sensors including temperature sensors, multispectral cameras,s, and LiDAR sensors are integrated along with the mechanical payload for its flight control. These sensors gather real-time information about the weather, soil, crop health, and pest growth.

Market Geographical Share

North America is the dominating region during the forecast period

In 2021, North America had the highest revenue share of prominent growth. The U.S. is the leading user of drones in agriculture and livestock management applications globally. In the U.S., drones are used in several applications including seed planting, chemical spraying, crop monitoring, and irrigation management. Milking robots also have significant growth potential in the country. According to Lely, a market leader for milking robots, the penetration of milking robots in the U.S. is nearly 5% of the total dairy farms and the number is likely to grow by 20-30% over the near future. Canada has also emerged as a lucrative growth avenue for milking robots and driverless tractors. The country reported the operation of its first driverless tractor made by Dot Technology Corp. in 2019. The growing precision agriculture practices in Saskatchewan and Alberta will support the sales of robot tractors and drones in Canada.

Companies and Competitive Landscape

The global agricultural robots market is highly fragmented with wide product differentiation. A large number of suppliers operating and product launches are intensifying the market competition. The agricultural drone segment has been witnessing several new entrants and product designs in the market. Companies such as SZ DJI Technology Co., Ltd., AgEagle Aerial Systems Inc., and PrecisionHawk are some of the leading players in the market. However, robotic categories such as driverless tractors and milking robots are significantly consolidated with very few companies holding a significant share of the market. For instance, the milking robot sales in Europe are largely dominated by six companies – DeLaval, Lely, GEA, Boumatic, Fullwood Packo, and SAC. These companies represent every unit sold in the region. In the milking robots industry, the leading players are highly focused on the integration of sensor networks and data analytic solutions to their offerings to gain a competitive edge over competitors. The driverless tractors market is still in its infancy stage across the globe considering their adoption rate and technological advancements. Several leading tractor manufacturers are focusing on the development of robot tractors to cater to the rising interest of farmers. The Asia Pacific region is at the forefront of developing driverless tractors. A large number of tractor manufacturers in the region have unveiled autonomous tractor designs. Japanese manufacturers such as Yanmar Co., Ltd., Iseki & Co., Ltd., and Kubota Corporation launched their driverless tractor designs into the domestic market. Iseki launched its robot tractor TJV 655 in December 2018 and has recorded sales of 10 units as of May 2019 alone in Japan.

COVID-19 Impact on Agricultural Robots Market

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the deployment of robotics and automation in the agriculture sector. Manufacturing of components witnessed a considerable slowdown during the coronavirus crisis to curb the infection spread. The use of certain farming robots may have gone down due to lower demand and the production of agro-products like milk. However, with numerous challenges including supply chain disruption, and shortage of labor, farm owners may have also come to realize that automation could be the key to solving some of the problems in case of any future disruptions. Amid widespread disruption caused by the pandemic, agriculture companies applying robotics and automation to farming could record significant benefits. Most types of agricultural robots have been affected by this crisis, which is expected to be a short-term impact. For instance, during the Q1 2020 conference call, the CFO of Trimble (US) announced that its OEM hardware business, which collectively makes up less than 15% of revenue has been significantly impacted by the shutdown of its customer’s production facilities. John Deere (US) announced in its Q2 2020 results those revenues decreased 18% and 13% in three and six months respectively in 2020 compared to that of 2019. The company’s Agriculture & Turf segment (which caters to the agricultural robot market) had a decrease in revenues of 18%.

The global agricultural robots market report would provide an access to approximately 69 market data tables, 65 figures, and 170 pages