Smart Solutions for Selective Harvesting of Cereals Based on Mycotoxin Content

Abstract

Fusarium head blight (FHB) is a fungal disease that affects a variety of cereals. FHB is most commonly caused by the fungal pathogen Fusarium graminearum. FHB infected crops can develop a wide variety of mycotoxins, which are very dangerous to humans and animals. FHB is currently being controlled by chemical fungicides, which are very dangerous for the environment and are only effective under certain conditions. Resistant varieties and well-chosen agricultural technologies can help reduce the prevalence of FHB in plants. However, at present there are no fully resistant varieties. The article analyses the possible ways to identify FHB infected areas in winter wheat and barley crops and how this data can be used to map field infestation. For the detection of FHB is used field scanning and analysis of the multispectral or hyperspectral data results on field contamination. According exact field locations affected by FHB, harvesting trajectories can be designed to distinguish between completely uninfected, minimally infected, and heavily infected plants. According to this, the harvest can later be sorted into top quality, medium and low quality.