PERRY, Ga. — 250 acres in Perry will be the home of a new farm complete with robots and artificial intelligence.
State Sen. Larry Walker said it's the perfect spot for Perry’s new high-tech farm.
"We want to be the number one spot for integrative, precision ag right in middle Georgia," Walker said.
Right off Elko Road and next to the Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter will be the innovative project known as the Grand Farm.
"A high-profile operation that will get I think a lot of people excited and educated agriculture. It's not the agriculture of just driving a tractor you know of 20-30 years ago," Walker said.
In fact, Walker said some of the technology on the farm could have tractors driving themselves, making farmers more efficient.
"Using artificial intelligence and optics and drones and self-driving tractors and that kind of thing will help them be more efficient," Walker said.
Walker said there will be a robot that helps clean up eggs that chickens lay on the floor. It can sense and "see" the eggs and will operate like a Roomba to get the eggs.
Ramana Gosukonda is an agriculture science professor at Fort Valley State University. He said artificial intelligence is everywhere in agriculture.
"Artificial intelligence is making agriculture research expand into areas we could not do it before," Gosukonda said.
Gosukonda said AI can help keep predict what’s happening on a farm to better protect produce.
"Like plant diseases, they can predict. Animal diseases it can predict," Gosukonda continued. "We can predict the reduction rate of salmonella and like E. coli.”
Gosukonda said people should get used to AI being around in agriculture.
"Anything seed preparation to you know food harvesting, post harvest everywhere AI is there," Gosukonda said.
Walker said the final details to get the land turned over to their partner, the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES) at the University of Georgia, are in progress.
Walker said $3 million has been allocated from the last two state budgets. and he hopes the property transfer will make it to the governor's desk at the end of this legislative session.
He said he expects to see some activity out there around June.