The Automated Farm

“The future of farming is already here… Taylor Farms is a prime example of changes to come in the valley,” says this San Francisco Chronicle article, Ag-tech: The automated farm.

Taylor Farms embraces AgTech innovations, from automated harvesting in our fields to robotic case packing in our facilities.

As we harvest over 1.5 million pounds of lettuce each day, automation makes sense, and is the logical next step in farming and production. A widespread labor shortage in the agriculture industry has solidified the need for technology and innovation in our business.

The robotic arms in our processing facility have the ability to assemble 60 to 80 salads a minute, which is double the output of packing by hand. This type of automation creates opportunities for higher skilled positions, directing employee growth to roles where they are supervising automated lines or focusing on quality control.

The same goes in the field. Since automation, productivity has increased from 400 pounds of product harvested per hour to 700-800 pounds per hour, and has also created a more ergonomically desirable environment for employees. Traditional hand harvesting requires employees to spend 7-8 hours a day bent over, cutting product by hand. With our automated harvesters, employees now are able to comfortably ride on the harvester’s platform and inspect, trim, and pack the romaine, ensuring the quality of the harvested product.

Learn more about how we use these ag tech innovations by reading the full San Francisco Chronicle article. To learn about the efficiency of automated harvesting machinery, read this feature from Intel IQ. To see how Taylor Farms is utilizing technology and automation in additional areas of the business, check out this article from WIRED.