Hard to switch: why US farmers are embracing Chinese drones despite concerns
US farmers are increasingly relying on drones and other systems made by Chinese companies, despite Washington’s security fears
When David Bruntz, vice-president of the US Meat Export Federation, recently began looking for drones to monitor the cattle on his Nebraska ranch, he found that only one brand offered a “reasonably priced” solution: the Chinese tech giant DJI.
The Shenzhen-based company already dominates the US drone market, and its products are now rapidly being adopted across the agricultural sector as the firm rolls out specialised solutions for sowing fields, spraying crops and tracking livestock.
“It’s moving rather fast,” Bruntz said.
Like many farmers in the state, Bruntz is not thrilled to be relying on Chinese technology. He worries about the potential for supply chain disruptions of the kind that occurred during the Covid-19 pandemic, when “we couldn’t get enough chips to put in our vehicles and things like that”.
But for now, he feels he has little other choice. The Chinese systems are not only far cheaper than American-made alternatives on the market; they often also have more advanced capabilities.
“They definitely have the advantage in a lot of technical areas,” he said. “The remedy would be to develop our own products in the US.”