Fabin Henrquez is Head Manager of the Digitalization and Agricultural Sustainability Department at Agrcola El Parque in Frutillar, Los Lagos, Chile--his wife's family company. They have over 30 years of experience farming 1,700 hectares of industrial potatoes for PepsiCo, certified seed potatoes, and rotational crops with 80 employees. An Engineer in Natural Resources Conservation with a Master's in Irrigation and Precision Agriculture from Universidad de Talca, Fabin has led technology-driven transformation projects over six years, integrating UAVs, precision farming tools, multispectral imaging, and GIS software to optimize resource allocation and reduce environmental impact.
Fabin's Nuffield research addresses two interconnected challenges threatening agriculture's future: data fragmentation and the aging farmer population. Currently, his operation manages four different soil moisture sensor brands requiring four separate platforms--creating unnecessary barriers to decision-making that discourage technology adoption. Meanwhile, the average farmer age has reached 58-68 years across Chile, the US, UK, and Japan, with younger generations showing limited interest in farming. His research will explore how developed agricultural nations are successfully navigating digital agriculture adoption across generational divides, examining integrated technology platforms and strategies for attracting tech-savvy new generations. His goal is to position Chile as a Latin American leader in bridging these gaps and establishing a replicable model for the region's agricultural future.
