In pictures: Getting more for less with precision farming

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  Precision farming is expected to grow at an estimated compounded annual growth rate of 13.4% from 2013 to 2018. Brendan Smialowski / AFP

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  Estimates indicate that 60% of farmers in the US already use some form of technology – like GPS systems – to increase the efficiency of their equipment. Tractors and harvesters are also employed to facilitate precise navigation and steering. Brendan Smialowski / AFP

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  A global positioning receiver on the top of a combine harvester at the Little Bohemia Creek farm in Warwick, Maryland. Brendan Smialowski / AFP

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  A sensor is seen attached to a tractor drawn liquid fertiliser applicator at the Little Bohemia Creek farm in Warwick, Maryland. Technologies such as GPS and auto-steering have become the norm in mechanized farming in the United States and other countries. Brendan Smialowski / AFP

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  A sensor is seen attached to a tractor drawn liquid fertiliser applicator at the Little Bohemia Creek farm in Warwick, Maryland. Technologies such as GPS and auto-steering have become the norm in mechanized farming in the United States and other countries. Brendan Smialowski / AFP

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  Above, a sensor that uses visible and invisible light to judge crop health is used at the Little Bohemia Creek farm in Warwick, Maryland. Brendan Smialowski / AFP

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  Andrew Isaacson watches from the cockpit of a tractor as screens show where he has fertilised a corn field at the Little Bohemia Creek farm in Warwick, Maryland. Brendan Smialowski / AFP

Farms in the US and other countries are increasingly employing precision agriculture tools and technologies such as GPS and auto-steering to improve sustainability and productivity in their operations.