DigAC 2020

DIGITAL

AGRICULTURE

CONFERENCE 2020

LEVERAGING DIGITAL
TRANSFORMATION TOWARDS
SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE

21 – 23 DECEMBER 2020

Organiser: Co-organisers: WEBSITE
Supported by: digac.mardi.gov.my



DIGITAL

AGRICULTURE

CONFERENCE 2020

LEVERAGING DIGITAL
TRANSFORMATION TOWARDS
SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE

21 – 23 DECEMBER 2020

Organiser: Co-organisers: Supported by:

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MDEC

SPONSORS:

Platinum

Gold

Silver

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FAMA

CONTENTS PAGE
7
Message from the Minister
Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industries (MAFI)

Message from the Director General 8
Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI)

Message from the Chairman 9
Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020) Main Organising Committee

Corporate Profiles 10

The Main Organising Committee 14

About Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020) 17

Programme 18

List of Sponsors and Exhibitors 24

Link for DigAC 2020 Materials 26

Acknowledgement 27

Abstracts of Poster Presentations

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CRAUN

21 – 23 December 2020 7

MESSAGE FROM THE MINISTER

MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FOOD INDUSTRIES (MAFI)

Greetings to all participants of Digital Agriculture
Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020).

Forecasted exponential growth of world population would require additional food
supply despite facing the decremental of natural resources due to human activities and
environmental uncertainties. Digital agriculture with new and advanced technologies
enable farmers and stakeholders in improving food production system, anticipated as
a promising solution. The digitisation has potential to advance many of the sustainable
development goals (SDGs) with areas of application across a wide variety of sectors, such
as increase crop yield, targeted irrigation, giving the power of information, improving
supply chains, monitoring waste of production, improving integration and sustainable
land management.

The Internet of Things (IoT) can be widely applied and has become very critical component
in ranges of economic sectors and became a paradigm shift that has significant impacts
on agricultural sector and food industries. Currently, the IoT has been applied to develop
smart farming system, drones, Artificial Intelligence (AI), food safety and traceability. In
line with the Forth Industrial Revolution (IR 4.0), the Malaysian IoT Strategic Direction Plan
is established, aiming to be a major hub for regional IoT development. The mission is to
create the national IoT ecosystem that can expand the use and stimulate the digital
industries as a source of new economic growth. Utilising the IoT, crop performance is
predicted much higher in future. The production growth rate is forecast to increase if the
IoT framework has been maintained.

Additionally, smart farming system is expected to increase the productivity while plant
factory is one of the foremost steps in adopting digital elements with internalising IoT
elements. Further, this reduces dependency on conventional inputs, especially land
and labor. Undeniably, digital agriculture plays crucial role in increasing productivity,
boosting food production, reducing dependency on imports, improving food security,
creating potential incomes and thus attracting new players to venture in. Being in the
pandemic crisis of COVID-19, food industry players should foresee this opportunity as a
new platform that could lead to smarter agricultural system with significant impacts on
the entire supply chain, from production level up to marketing elements. Apparently, the
impact from pandemic have actually forced the use of digital platforms in agricultural
and food supply chains.

Therefore, this is the most appropriate time for DigAC 2020 to be organised as one of the
earliest platforms, together with all stakeholders involved in discussing and formulating
the direction of digital agriculture. It is hoped that our efforts in organising this conference
can have a positive impact in realizing the digitalisation of agriculture as well as
contributing to the formation of an agricultural industry structure that is beneficial to the
national economy.

YB DATUK SRI DR. RONALD KIANDEE

8 Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020)

MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR GENERAL

MALAYSIAN AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
INSTITUTE (MARDI)

Assalamua’laikum w.b.t. and Greetings to all participants of Digital Agriculture Conference
2020 (DigAC 2020).

Alhamdulillah, all praises to Allah that the Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 or known
as DigAC 2020 with the theme ‘Leveraging Digital Transformation Towards Sustainable
Agriculture’ is successfully being realised in Run The World Platform. This event is
organised by the Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI)
and supported by the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industries Malaysia (MAFI) together
witch our co-organisers: Federal Agricultral Marketing Authority (FAMA), Malaysia Digital
Economy Corporation Sdn. Bhd. (MDEC) and Agrobank. MARDI is always committed to
work closely with other agencies and industry players for the benefit of the agro-based
industry and its stakeholder. I hereby would like to congratulate the organisers and extend
my heartiest welcome to all keynote and plenary speakers, presenters, participants and
guests to this meaningful event and adhering to the standard operation procedure
guidelines that are in place.

Smart farming technology and application innovation like Internet of Things (IoT), precision
farming, robotics, big data analytics and blockchain are among the technologies that
can be implemented in parallel to suite the IR 4.0. Besides that, in this pandemic era
(COVID-19) the use of online marketing platform is showing and upward trend. Thus, this
shows the importance of digital agriculture to ensure our food security for the nation.

This conference aims to provide a platform for all players in agriculture, ICT, finance,
policy makers, academics and relevant parties to deliberate and address the challenges
in digital agriculture towards the Fourth Industry Revolution (IR 4.0) while empowering
the national agriculture sector. Furthermore, work enhancement in digital agriculture
can be strengthening from the public and private sector collaboration despite raising
awareness of its importance.

I am confident that DigAC 2020 will be a success and that participants will have the
opportunity to gain knowledge, interact, exchange ideas and experiences for their
personal development as well as for the progress of their profession. Finally, I wish
everyone successful and fruitful deliberations.

DATUK DR. MOHAMAD ROFF MOHD NOOR

21 – 23 December 2020 9

MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMAN

DIGITAL AGRICULTURE CONFERENCE 2020 (DigAC2020)
MAIN ORGANISING COMMITTEE

Assalamua’laikum w.b.t. and Greetings to all participants of Digital Agriculture Conference
2020 (DigAC 2020).

It is our great pleasure to welcome you to the first national Digital Agriculture Conference
(DigAC 2020). This conference is a platform that brings policy-makers, scientists,
academia, industry and farmer-entrepreneurs together to share, discuss and exchange
ideas involving Digital Agriculture and its challenges in the IR4.0 era, thus empowering
the nation’s agriculture sector.

DigAC 2020 covers a variety of topics including Policy on Digital Agriculture, Current and
Future Technology, Agricultural Digital Economic and Marketing, Application of Digital
Agriculture and others. We have speakers from their respective areas who will give
valuables and insightful talks to guide us to better understanding of Digital Agriculture.
DigAC 2020 attracts participation from university, public and private sector which is a
good sign for more collaboration between public and private sector.

We have more than 20 posters displayed online for the poster competition. The
competition attracts participation from university students, various research institutes
and agencies. The best poster award will be announced at the end of the conference.

We are grateful to all the committee members who worked hard to make this event
happen successfully. We also like to thank our co-organisers and sponsor; FAMA, and
Agrobank for their support toward this conference.

Last but not least, we would like to thank all the speakers for sharing your knowledge and
experience on this domain. Our heartfelt thanks also go to those who participated in the
poster session which gave additional knowledge apart from the talk by the distinguished
speakers and to all participants who helped in accomplishing the goals of the conference.
We will do our best to make your stay at this conference pleasant and a fruitful one. We
hope you will find this conference interesting and hopefully this conference will provide
you with valuable opportunity to share ideas with others.

FAIZAH PATAHOL RAHMAN

10 Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020)

CORPORATE PROFILE
MALAYSIAN AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH AND
DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE (MARDI)

Vision
The preferred provider of innovative technologies for sustainable and competitive
agricultural industry by 2030.

Mission
• Driving agricultural productivity and sustainability through transfer of modern,

efficient and cost effective technologies.
• Strengthening financial resources, talent, facility and infrastructure for research and

development.
• Enhancing organisational visibility and good governance through effective, efficient,

transparent and accountable management.

Our Goals
• Disseminating scientific information and transferring technologies.
• Fostering scientific and ethical culture.
• Nurturing entrepreneurs to become successful.
• Developing appropriate and modern technologies.
• Conserving and sustainable use of agriculture biodiversity.

Thrusts
• Increasing productivity of food crops and livestock through innovative research.​
• Generating and adopting new and modern technologies to transform agriculture

and agrofood industry to become more sustainable and competitive.
• Exploration, conservation and utilisation of biodiversity and natural resources for

sustainable agriculture and wealth creation.​
• Strengthening the dissemination, transfer and adoption of MARDI’s technologies to

target groups.​
• Strengthening organisational visibility and governance.

www.mardi.gov.my

21 – 23 December 2020 11

CORPORATE PROFILE
FEDERAL AGRICULTURAL MARKETING
AUTHORITY (FAMA)

FAMA was established as a statutory body in September 1965 to supervise, coordinate,
regulate and improve the marketing of agricultural produce in Malaysia. This includes
the import and export of agricultural produce.

VISION
The leading authority on food and agricultural marketing.

MISSION
To develop an efficient and effective food and agricultural marketing chain to increase
customer value.

OBJECTIVES
• Realisation of the Natural Vision and the National Agricultural Policy to make Malaysia

a major world producer of food through the efficient and effective marketing of food
and agricultural products.
• Development of a marketing infrastructure and a marketing supply chain system
that is effective and efficient.
• Improving the marketing and increasing the demand of food and agricultural
products in the domestic and international markets.
• Leading human resource capacity building in agriculture marketing based on the
latest knowledge and technology.

FUNCTIONS
• To coordinate agricultural marketing activities involving both the private sector and

the government department agencies.
• To improve the marketing system and to expand as well as develop new markets for

agricultural produce of Malaysia.
• To collaborate with the private sector and government department/agencies in

creating an efficient and effective agricultural marketing system.
• To develop and enhance efficient management in the agricultural industry related to

marketing activities or processing of agricultural products.
• To be directly involved in the agricultural industry, especially in marketing activities or

processing of agricultural products.

www.fama.gov.my

12 Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020)

CORPORATE PROFILE
MALAYSIA DIGITAL ECONOMY
CORPORATION SDN. BHD. (MDEC)

Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) is a government agency under the
purviewof the Ministry of Communications and Multimedia Malaysia entrusted to lead
Malaysia’s digital economy forward. Incorporated in 1996 to oversee the development of
the MSC Malaysia initiative, MDEC’s primary mandate today is to accelerate the growth
of digitally-skilled Malaysians, digitally-powered businesses and digital investments
in Malaysia. MDEC is focused on creating inclusive, high-quality growth through the
nationwide digitalisation initiatives that are in line with the Government’s Shared
Prosperity Vision 2030 and firmly establishing Malaysia as the Heart of DigitalASEAN.

#LetsBuildTogether #DigitalMalaysiaForward

To find out more about MDEC’s Digital Economy initiatives,

please visit us at www.mdec.my or follow us on:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/MyMDEC/

Twitter: @mymdec

21 – 23 December 2020 13

CORPORATE PROFILE
AGROBANK

ABOUT AGROBANK
Agrobank is a leader in agriculture financing and values-based banking based (VBI)* in
Malaysia. Established in 1969, Agrobank is actively involved in charting the growth and
development of Malaysia’s agriculture industry by offering shariah compliant products
and solutions across various customer segments including corporate, commercial,
consumer, trade finance and micro financing customers. Agrobank is a full-fledged
Islamic bank since 1st July 2015.

As a market driven, customer-centric DFI (Development Financial Institution) with a
primary focus on strengthening the agriculture sector in Malaysia, Agrobank strikes an
equal balance to its developmental and commercial roles to benefit the agriculture
sector. Agrobank provides a comprehensive repertoire of financing solutions for the
agriculture community; that includes upstream activities related to primary food and
commodities-based agriculture activities to downstream activities such as processing,
marketing and distribution of agricultural products.

Agrobank also offers retail banking financing solutions to improve the well-being of the
agriculture community. This is done through its network of 192 customer touch points
including 138 branches, 1 agro banking, 1 virtual banking, 10 commercial financing centre,
34 kiosk, 8 agro corners and agro point.

In 2019, Agrobank celebrates its golden jubilee Anniversary, as it marks 50 years of its
proud establishment developing the agro industry.

* VBI or value-based intermediation is an initiative by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) which aims
to improve the products and services offered by Islamic financial institutions towards a better
facilitation of entrepreneurship, community well-being, sustainable environment and economic
growth, without compromising on shareholders’ returns

www.agrobank.com.my

14 Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020)

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AGRO BANK

21 – 23 December 2020 15

THE MAIN ORGANISING COMMITTEE

Main Organising Committee

Patron : Datuk Dr. Mohamad Roff Mohd Noor

Director General, MARDI

Advisor : Hasimah Hafiz Ahmad

Deputy Director General (Research), MARDI

: Tapsir Serin (Starting 1 December 2020)
Deputy Director General (Development & Operations), MARDI

Chairman : Faizah Patahol Rahman

Director of ICT Management Center (IM), MARDI

Vice Chairman : Tapsir Serin (Until 30 November 2020)
Director of Centre for Socio-Economic Research, Market Intelligence

and Agribusiness (ES), MARDI

: Mohd Rashid Rabu (Starting 1 December 2020)
Director of Centre for Socio-Economic Research, Market Intelligence

and Agribusiness (ES), MARDI

Members : Co-organisers

1. Nor Hairi Harun (FAMA)

2. Aaida Abdul Rashid (FAMA)

3. Khairil Amal (FAMA)

4. Navin Sinnathamby (MDEC)

5. Saras Kajandram (MDEC)

6. Budiotomo Othman (Agrobank)

7. Norzuleana Abdul Razak (Agrobank)

MARDI
1. Azman Mohd Saad
2. Dr. Zulhazmi Sayuti
3. Mohamad Zulkifly Zakaria @ Mustafa
4. Jafni Johari Jiken
5. Mohamed Yusof Mohamed Amin
6. Dr. Noor Shaeda Ismail
7. Hirfie Hassan
8. Aida Al-Quswa Mohamad Ali
9. Sarimah Kahar
10. Marina Ahmad
11. Dr. Arina Mohd Noh
12. Elmaliana Albahari
13. Norhafizah Mohamad Yusof
14. Hanisah Abu Hasan
15. Mariana Mat Yasin
16. Ruslina Ruslan

16 Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020)

Sub-Committee

TECHNICAL

Chairman : Mohamad Zulkifly Zakaria @ Mustafa

Members : Mohd Abid Ahmad
Elmaliana Albahari Mohd Shafiq Dato’ Dr. Azizan
Aida Al-Quswa Mohamad Ali Mohd Zaffrie Mat Amin
Marina Ahmad Hazida Syima Hamazah
Dr. Arina Mohd Noh Muhammad Izzat Farid Musaddin
Dr. Engku Elini Engku Ariff Fazlinda Fadzil
Dr. Roslina Ali
Izatul Lail Mohd Yasar

SECRETARIAT AND FINANCE Nurasyiqin Abd Rashid
Nurul Amalina Kasran
Chairman : Norhafizah Mohamad Yusof Noazni Mohd Noor
Nurul Izzah Zainudin
Members : Hady Ali
Hanisah Abu Hasan Hazida Syima Hamazah
Mariana Mat Yasin Nurzafirah Mat Zain@Mohd Zin
Ruslina Ruslan Suhaimi Mohd Salleh
Syed Sajidan Syed Jafri Suhana Ahmad
Haizan Abd Razak
Taufikurahman Bohari
Nor Akma Yusoff
Nor Izzati Yahya
Muhd Amin Ramly
Mohd Shahrul Nizwanshah Karim

ADVERTISEMENT, SPONSORSHIP AND EXHIBITION

Chairman : Dr. Zulhazmi Sayuti

Members : Hanisah Abu Hasan
Sakinah Idris Elmaliana Albahari
Puteri Aminatulhawa Megat Amaddin Dr. Arina Mohd Noh
Zulaikha Mazlan

21 – 23 December 2020 17

PROTOCOL, PROMOTION AND LAUNCHING

Chairman : Dr. Mohd Syaifudin Abdul Rahman

Members : Musalmah Abdul Ghani
Jafni Johari Jiken Muhammad Firdaus Mohamed Yusof
Abdul Rahman Abdul Razak Siti Aishah Mohd Shari
Hazrul Amry Mohd Noor Haikal Azhari Haliza
Zarif Zulkefli Rosnina Rosli
Azizi Md Said Maziah Md Zain
Mohd Faizuin Abd Hamid Siti Sri Intan Nor Fharis Mohd Ani
Jazzmi Shah Dawood Maiden

LOGISTIC AND SAFETY

Chairman : Mohamed Yusof Mohamed Amin

Members : Tuan Muhammad Arsyad Tuan Yunus
Dr. Noor Shaeda Ismail Mohd Afzan Maliki
Hairil Ifran Mat Sharif Nazrulkhairie Makmor
Hirfie Hassan Mohd Shahrizan Sham Kamisan
Lukman Jamin

18 Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020)

ABOUT DIGITAL AGRICULTURE CONFERENCE 2020

INTRODUCTION
The agriculture sector in Malaysia is the third most important sector contributing to
national income. In 2018, an amount of RM99.5 billion or equivalent to 7.3% was contributed
to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by the agriculture sector. Palm oil was the major
contributor to the GDP of agriculture sector at 37.9% followed by other agriculture (25.1%),
livestock (14.9%), fishery (12.5%), forestry and logging (6.9%) and rubber (2.8%).

To achieve national food security and guaranteed food supply, the agriculture sector
requires a transformation to solve current issues such as inefficient data accessibility
and traceability, scattered information across the food supply chain and aging farmers.
Smart farming innovation and technology applications such as the Internet of Things
(IoT), precision farming, robotics, big data analytics and blockchain are some of the
technologies that can be implemented parallel to the Industrial Revolution 4.0 (IR 4.0).
The upsurge in e-marketing implementation during the current Covid-19 crisis shows the
importance of digital food supply chain to ensure the food supply is enough and easily
available to the people throughout the crisis.

The aim of national Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020) is to gather experts
in agriculture, ICT, finance, policy makers, academicians and all stakeholders in order to
discuss and exchange ideas involving Digital Agriculture and its challenges in the IR 4.0
era, thus empowering the nation’s agriculture sector.

OBJECTIVES
• Establish a platform for knowledge sharing, implementation and adaptation of digital

technology in agriculture sector.
• Strengthen the digital agricultural collaboration between the public and private

sector.
• Increase awareness on the importance of digital agriculture.

TYPE OF GREENHOUSE IRRIGATION SYSTEM GROWING SYSTEM 21 – 23 December 2020 19Fajar Saintifik Sdn Bhd
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DRIP IRRIGATION DUTCH BUCKETFAJAR and Environmental
JACKROOF AUTOPOTS Control i.e. Chambers
A SHAPE ROOT CHILLING SYSTEM ETC and Greenhouse &
DOME OTHERS Irrigation Division since
ETC 2002. We also provide
comprehensive support
CLIMATE CONTROL on training,
commissioning and
CIRCULATION FAN maintenance
VENTILATION For More Info, kindly
contact :- 013-369 4125

20 Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020)

PROGRAMME

DATE/TIME PROGRAMME

Day 1 21 December 2020 (Monday)

0800-0900 Registration

Keynote Session:
Chairperson: Hasimah Hafiz Ahmad
Deputy Director General (Research)
Malaysian Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MARDI)

0900-0945 Keynote 1
10-10 MySTIE Framework for the Transformation Towards
Sustainable Smart Agriculture
Prof. Datuk Dr. Asma Ismail
President
Academy of Sciences Malaysia (ASM)

0945-1030 Keynote 2
Empowering the Agriculture Sector with Digitalization
YBhg. Datuk Wira Dr Hj. Rais Hussin Mohamed Ariff
Chairman
Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC)

1030-1045 Break
Poster Showcase

1045-1130 Opening Ceremony

• Recitation of Doa

• Welcoming speech 1130-1300
YBhg. Datuk Dr. Mohamad Roff Mohd Noor Virtual Exhibitions
Director General of Malaysian Agricultural and Poster
Showcase
Research and Development Institute
(MARDI)

• Opening speech
YB Datuk Seri Dr. Ronald Kiandee
Minister of Ministry of Agriculture and Food

Industry (MAFI)

1130-1145 • Virtual Exhibitions and Poster Showcase

Break
Virtual Exhibitions and Poster Showcase

21 – 23 December 2020 21

DATE/TIME PROGRAMME

Session 1
Digital Agricultural Policy and Way Forward
Chairperson: Tapsir Serin
Deputy Director General
(Development and Operations)
Malaysian Agricultural Research and
Development Institute (MARDI)

1145-1210 Paper 1
Digital Agricultural Policy and Way Forward
Ts. Adi Azlan Mohd Ali 1130-1300
ICT Consultant Virtual Exhibitions
Malaysian Administrative Modernisation and and Poster
Management Planning Unit (MAMPU) Showcase

1210-1235 Paper 2 0830-1055
Industry 4.0 in Agriculture Sector Virtual Exhibitions
Shireen Jasmin Ali and Poster
Director of Sectoral Policy Showcase
Ministry of International Trade and Industry
(MITI)

1235-1300 Paper 3
National IoT Strategic Roadmap in
Agriculture: Where are we?
Ir. Dr. Nordin Ramli
Senior Staff Researcher
MIMOS Berhad

Day 2 22 December 2020 (Tuesday)

Session 2
Digital Agricultural Technology: Current and Future
Chairperson: Faizah Patahol Rahman
Director of ICT Management Centre
Malaysian Agricultural Research and
Development Institute (MARDI)

0900-0925 Paper 4
From Industry Revolution 4.0 to Intelligent
Agriculture 4.0
Maznan Deraman
Head of Innovative Solution
TM ONE, Telekom Malaysia Berhad

0925-0950 Paper 5
Application of IoT in Agriculture
Dr. Mazlan Abbas
Chief Executive Officer
Favoriot Sdn. Bhd.

22 Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020)

DATE/TIME PROGRAMME

0950-1015 Paper 6
1015-1040
Blockchain: Transforming the Agriculture and

Food Supply Chain

Effendy Zulkifly

Chief Executive Officer

Blockworq Sdn Bhd.

Paper 7 0830-1055

Preparing for Industry 4.0: Lessons from Large Virtual Exhibitions
Scale Precision Farming in Rice Production and Poster
Ir. Dr. Badril Hisham Abu Bakar Showcase
Senior Research Officer of Engineering

Research Centre

Malaysian Agricultural Research and

Development Institute (MARDI)

1040-1055 Break
Virtual Exhibitions and Poster Showcase

Session 3
Agricultural Digital Economic and Marketing in New Norms Era
Chairperson: Mohamad Mustahapa Awang
Deputy Director General
Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (FAMA)

1055-1120 Paper 8
Digital Agrifinance: Convergence of Agriculture, Finance and
Digital Technologies
Lokman Affandy Yahya
Department Head, Corporate and Strategic Planning Department
Agrobank

1120-1145 Paper 9
Reforming the Agriculture Sector via Digitalization
Navin Sinnathamby
Senior Principal Lead
Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC)

1145-1210 Paper 10
Extended Reality: Technology and Application in Agriculture
Prof. Dr. Mohd Shahrizal Sunar
Director of Institute of Human Centred Engineering
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM)

1210-1235 Paper 11
Digital Agriculture in Malaysia: Empowering Farmers in New
Norms Era
Redza Imran Datuk Abdul Rahim
Director of Business Development
REDtone

21 – 23 December 2020 23

DATE/TIME PROGRAMME
Day 3 23 December 2020 (Wednesday)

Session 4
Application of Digital Agriculture
Chairperson: Navin Sinnathamby
Senior Principal Lead
Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC)

0900-0925 Paper 12
Readiness of the Small and Medium
Enterprises to Adopt Industry 4.0
Technologies
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Juwaidah Sharifuddin
Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM)

0925-0950 Paper 13 0830-1055
0950-1015 Reinvent the Future of Food Industry
Anthony See Virtual Exhibitions
Founder Food Market Hub and Poster
Showcase
Paper 14
Experience/Application of Digital Agriculture
in Livestock Farming
Datuk Jeffery Ng Chonn Nge
General Manager
Chop Cheong Bee Sdn. Bhd.

1015-1040 Paper 15
AGRIMOR: Aerodyne’s End-to-End Platform for
Agriculture DT3 data
Razwan Zakaria
Senior Vice President
Aerodyne Group

1040-1055 Break
Virtual Exhibitions and Poster Showcase

24 Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020)

DATE/TIME PROGRAMME

Session 5
Panel Discussion – Digital Agriculture: Where are we now?
Moderator: Ir. Dr. Nordin Ramli
Senior Staff Researcher
MIMOS Berhad

1055-1155 Panel Discussion
• Introduction
• Current issue
• Way forward

1155-1210 Panel 1 : Dr. Mazlan Abbas, Favoriot Sdn. Bhd.
1210-1300 Panel 2 : Navin Sinnathamby, Malaysia Digital Economy

1300 Corporation (MDEC)
Panel 3 : Datuk Jeffery Ng Chonn Nge, Chop Cheong Bee Sdn. Bhd.

Break
Poster Showcase

Closing Ceremony
• Announcement Best Poster Award
• Closing Remarks by Director General of Malaysian Agricultural
Research and Development Institute (MARDI)

End of Event

The programme is subject to change. The organiser reserves the right to make changes to the
event programme without prior notice.

21 – 23 December 2020 25

LIST OF SPONSORS AND EXHIBITORS

PLATINUM

Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) Sdn Bhd
2360 Persiaran APEC
63000 Cyberjaya
Selangor Darul Ehsan

Tel: 1-800-88-8338 (within Malaysia)
Tel: 603-83153000 (International)
Fax: 603-83153115 (Fax)
E-mail: [email protected]
www.mdec.my
GOLD

Federal Agricultural Marketing Authority (FAMA)
FAMA Headquarter, Bangunan FAMA Point
Lot 17304 Jalan Persiaran 1
Bandar Baru Selayang
68100 Batu Caves, Selangor Darul Ehsan
Tel: 603-61262020
Fax: 603-61385200
www.fama.gov.my

26 Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020)

SILVER

Agrobank
Leboh Pasar Besar,
50726, Kuala Lumpur
Tel: 603-27311600/ 1-300-88-2476
Fax: 603-26914908
www.agrobank.com.my

CRAUN Research Sdn. Bhd.
Lot 3147, Block 14, Jalan Sultan Tengah, Kuching, 93055, Petra Jaya, 93050 Kuching,

Sarawak
Tel: 6082-446489
E-mail: [email protected]
craunresearch.com.my

Fajar Saintifik Sdn. Bhd.
B-02-13, Block B, Serdang Perdana Selatan

Section 1, 43300 Seri Kembangan
Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia

Tel: 603-89451450
Fax: 603-89411734
E-mail: [email protected]

21 – 23 December 2020 27

LINK FOR DIGAC 2020 MATERIALS

Please scan the QR Code to
have access to the DigAC 2020

materials

https://drive.google.com/drive/
folders/1C7kwJKfP3bJIMp91lQsSQm_

XNnyq9vMy?usp=sharing

28 Digital Agriculture Conference 2020 (DigAC 2020)

Acknowledgement

The Main Organising Committee for the
DIGITAL AGRICULTURE CONFERENCE 2020 (DigAC2020)
expresses gratitude to the following dignitaries and agencies for their support and

commitment:
MALAYSIAN AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT

INSTITUTE (MARDI)
FEDERAL AGRICULTURAL MARKETING AUTHORITY (FAMA)
MALAYSIA DIGITAL ECONOMY CORPORATION SDN. BHD. (MDEC)

AGROBANK
Distinguished session chairmen, speakers, poster presenters, participants, participating

agencies and institutions
Exhibitors, sponsors and advertisers:
MALAYSIA DIGITAL ECONOMY CORPORATION (MDEC) SDN. BHD.
FEDERAL AGRICULTURAL MARKETING AUTHORITY (FAMA)

AGROBANK
CRAUN RESEARCH SDN. BHD.

FAJAR SAINTIFIK SDN. BHD.
All subcommittee members for their time and efforts
All relevant parties and individuals who have contributed to the

success of this event in one way or another.
We look forward to meeting you again

Thank You Very Much

“THE ORGANISING COMMITTEE DOES NOT ALLOW COPYING OF ANY OF PRESENTATION
WITHOUT PRIOR PERMISSION FROM THE AUTHORS”

Abstracts of Poster
Presentations



31

LIST OF POSTER PRESENTATIONS

NO NAME NAME CODE PAGE

1 Nurul Syakira Samsuri Evaluation of Brown Planthopper Risk P1
Prediction Model: Model Verification in
Yan, Kedah

2 Mohd Nazren Radzuan Detection of Foam in Palm Oil P2
Mill Wastewater Treatment Using
Computer Vision

3 Khairul Anuar Shafie Optimisation of Sowing Gantry Machine P3
for Leafy Vegetable Seeds

4 Maimunah Mohd Ali Artificial Intelligence for Fruit Quality P4
Detection

5 Wan Hawa Najibah Rapid Detection of Plant Pathogen by P5
Wan Rasni Isothermal Recombinase Polymerase
Amplification Assay

6 Mohamad Zulkifly Mobile Apps: Myperosakpadi P6
Zakaria@Mustafa

7 Mohamad Zulkifly Mobile Apps: Mykompos P7
Zakaria@Mustafa

8 Mohd Amri Md Yunus Electronic Meliponini Advanced System: P8
Iot Platform for Precision Stingless Bee
Farming

9 Badaruzzaman Measuring Radio Frequency (RF) and P9
Mohd Noh Microwave Permittivities of MARDI 76
(MRQ 76) Rice

10 Arina Mohd Noh CFD Simulation for Evaporative Cooling P10
Optimisation

11 Ten Seng Teik Application Internet of Things to P11
Transform a Greenhouse to a Smart
Mushroom House

12 Norhafniza Awaludin MARDI Iot-Biosensor Device for On-Site P12
Rice Blast Disease Detection

13 Nurshahidah Mohd MDI Herbarium Digital Library: P13
Rusli Herbarium Specimens Imaging

14 Siti Noor Aliah Development of a Graphical User P14
Baharom Interface Application for Estimation
of Soil Fertility Towards a Digital
Agriculture Practice

32 Digital Agriculture Conference (DiGAC) 2020

NO NAME NAME CODE PAGE
P15
15 Muhammad Zamir Challenges in Developing a Real-Time
Abdul Rasid Environmental Monitoring Network for
Highland Agrosystem

16 Habsah Bidin Enhancing Cattle Production Through P16
Reproductive Biotechnologies P17
P18
17 Norlida Mohamed Monitoring the Effect of Weather P19
Hamim Variables on Water Quality in the P20
Paddy Field P21
P22
18 Ili Aisyah Binti Kadir Digital Transformation of Fresh Fruit P24
Mohideen Bunch Grading System
P25
19 Muhamad Faiz Implementation of Load Cell Trailer for
Jamburi Fresh Fruit Bunch Yield Recording in
Semi-Commercial Oil Palm Field Trial

20 Muhd Akhtar Integration of Iot Systems for Control
Mohamad Tahir and Monitoring in Micro Irrigation
System

21 Kamalul Adham Che Application of Aerial Spraying for Weed

Ruzlan Management at Replanting Stage of

Oil Palm

22 Zaireen Abdul Leveraging Visualization Tool Towards
Rahman Dynamic Decision Making

23 Azuan Amron An Overview of MARDI Agrobiodiversity
Information System (AgrobIS) With
Special Reference to Plant Genetic
Resources for Food and Agriculture
(PGRFA)

24 Rosliza Jajuli National and Global Assessment on
State of Conservation and Sustainable
Utilization of PGRFA Via World
Information Early Warning System
(WIEWS)

33

ABSTRACTS OF POSTER PRESENTATIONS

P1

EVALUATION OF BROWN PLANTHOPPER RISK PREDICTION MODEL:
MODEL VERIFICATION IN YAN, KEDAH

Nurul Syakira Samsuri1*, Mohd Fitri Masarudin2, Mohammad Aufa Mhd. Bookeri1, Arina
Mohd Noh3 and Nuraini Ahmad Ariff Shah3

1Engineering Research Centre, MARDI Seberang Perai, 13200 Kepala Batas, Pulau Pinang
2Paddy and Rice Research Centre, MARDI Seberang Perai,
13200 Kepala Batas, Pulau Pinang

3 Engineering Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters, 43400 Serdang, Selangor
*E-mail: [email protected]

Brown planthopper (BPH) or Nilaparvata lugens is a threat to paddy fields. If the initial
population of BPH is not controlled or control measures are not taken fast enough, there
is a possibility of ‘hopperburn’, which causes significant yield losses. Precise and early
warning of pest population incidences would help farmers in planning to control the
brown planthopper population. An application of BPH risk prediction model was tested at
FELCRA Seberang Perak. A light trap system was set up in the study area. Several criteria
were considered to determine the BPH risk index at the study area during the following
week, namely temperature, humidity, light trap, crop age and rice variety. The results of
the analysis were displayed in the form of a BPH risk forecast map. The evaluated risk was
classified into low, medium or high level. The risk model can help farmers in particular in
devising crop protection plans for the following weeks. Preventive measures should be
the target in developing an early warning system in the future.

Keywords: early warning, brown planthopper, model evaluation, risk model.

34 Digital Agriculture Conference (DiGAC) 2020

P2

DETECTION OF FOAM IN PALM OIL MILL WASTEWATER TREATMENT USING COMPUTER
VISION

Mohd Nazren Radzuan

Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia,
43400 Serdang, Selangor

E-mail: [email protected]

One of the most important industries for the economic development of Malaysia is palm
oil, which can enhance the economic welfare of the population. Even though Malaysia
obviously benefits from this industrial development, the industry also contributes to
environmental pollution both at the input and output stages of its activities. Foaming in
wastewater treatment is a common operational problem in the palm oil mill industry.
Foam can occur in the aeration tank, secondary clarifier and anaerobic digester. The
foam is usually brown, sticky, and viscous. It floats and accumulates on top of the tank and
can take up a large fraction of the solid inventory and reactor volume, thus decreasing
the effluent quality and control of sludge retention time (SRT). It can also overflow onto
walkways and surrounding areas, posting severe difficulties and risk to operation and
the environment. This study seeks to detect foaming in wastewater treatment at palm oil
mills using computer vision in real time. This process is expected to help in establishing
an automated system to spray antifoam at specific areas that will help to solve the
foaming problem in palm oil mill wastewater treatment, thus contributing towards a
greener environment.

Keywords: foaming, computer vision, palm oil mill

35

P3

OPTIMISATION OF SOWING GANTRY MACHINE FOR LEAFY VEGETABLE SEEDS

Khairul Anuar Shafie1*, Puteri Aminatulhawa Megat2, Masnira Mohammad Yusoff2,
Ten Seng Teik1, Hafidha Azmon1, Mohammad Abid Ahmad2, Muhammad Syukri Hassan1,
Muhammad Hakimi Dzulkifli1, Mohd Adib Muhaimin Mohammad Salleh2 and Mohd Shukry

Hassan Basri1

1Engineering Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters, 43400 Serdang, Selangor
2Horticulture Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters, 43400 Serdang, Selangor

*E-mail: [email protected]

The sowing gantry machine was developed based on ‘3-axis Cartesian’ system, where
the placement of the seeds was set based on the coordinate or location of the media. In
this research, peat blocks were used as the growing medium. The peat blocks consist of
a mixture of soil, fertiliser and coco peat and can be formulated for specific crop types.
The gantry machine consists of a mechanical system, electrical system, pneumatic
system control system and Human Machine Interface (HMI). The machine can sow round
and coated-typed seeds of various sizes. The use of the gantry machine can also be
extended to the seeds of other types of crops, such as flowers and fruits. Sowing can
be done on two sizes of peat blocks: 1 inch and 1.5 inches. In this study, the optimised
setting of the sowing gantry machine was done on a 1.5 inch peat block. The evaluated
parameter is the vibration level of the seed holder. By optimising the sowing machine
setting, the number of successful seed sown on peat blocks will increase compared to in
a normal setting (no vibration).

Keywords: optimisation, peat blocks, sowing gantry machine, vegetable seeds

36 Digital Agriculture Conference (DiGAC) 2020

P4

ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE FOR FRUIT QUALITY DETECTION

Maimunah Mohd Ali1, *Norhashila Hashim1,3, Samsuzana Abd Aziz1,3, Ola Lasekan2

1Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Faculty of Engineering,
Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

2Department of Food Technology, Faculty of Food Science and Technology,
Universiti Putra Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia

3SMART Farming Technology Research Centre, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Putra
Malaysia, 43400 UPM Serdang, Selangor, Malaysia
*E-mail: [email protected]

Rising awareness for quality detection of fruits has imposed growing effort to develop
rapid and non-destructive techniques. Quality detection of fruits has prime importance in
various stages of processing due to the laborious process and the inability of the system
to measure the whole fruit production. The detection of fruit quality has depended on
various destructive techniques that require sample destruction and a large amount of
postharvest losses. Over the last decade, several attempts have been made in order to
find the most efficient method to replace destructive techniques. Artificial Intelligence
(AI) has emerged with big data technologies and high-performance computation to
create new opportunities in the multidisciplinary agri-food domain. The sophistication
of AI has evolved rapidly with modern technologies into real-time monitoring techniques
that provide rich recommendations and insights. A special focus is laid on the strength
of AI applications in determining fruit quality for producing high and optimum yields. The
future of using AI for assessing the fruit quality is promising which could lead to a rapid
evaluation of fruit quality and possibly be used for online fruit grading.

Keywords: artificial intelligence; agriculture; fruits; non-destructive; quality evaluation.

37

P5

RAPID DETECTION OF PLANT PATHOGEN BY ISOTHERMAL RECOMBINASE POLYMERASE
AMPLIFICATION ASSAY

Wan Hawa Najibah Wan Rasni1*, Nazariyah Yahaya1,2 and Maryam Mohamed Rehan1

1Department of Food Biotechnology, Faculty of Science and Technology, Universiti Sains
Islam Malaysia, 71800 Nilai, Negeri Sembilan

2International Fatwa and Halal (iFFAH) Centre, Universiti Sains Islam Malaysia, 71800
Nilai, Negeri Sembilan

*E-mail: [email protected]

Agricultural crops often suffer from various phytopathogen infections that cause
a great loss to the economy and pose a threat to food security. A simple and rapid
identification method of phytopathogen for an early warning and quick response is very
important in facilitating the disease management process. Molecular identification by
a polymerase chain reaction, though reliable, requires thermocycler which is costly and
time-consuming. In this study, a rapid identification method of Fusarium equiseti was
established using species-specific primer and recombinase polymerase amplification
(RPA) assay. With the incubation temperature of 37 °C, extracted DNA of F. equiseti was
successfully amplified within 30 minutes. The limit of detection of the RPA assay was further
analysed by using various concentrations of genomic DNA. Clear bands were detected
down to 0.024 ng ul-1. Therefore, RPA is a highly promising method to be optimised for the
point-of-care analysis and development of biosensor.

Keywords: rapid detection method, Fusarium equiseti, polymerase chain reaction (PCR),
recombinase polymerase amplification (RPA), isothermal nucleic acid amplification

38 Digital Agriculture Conference (DiGAC) 2020

P6

MOBILE APP: MyPerosakPadi

Mohamad Zulkifly Zakaria @ Mustafa1*, Badrulhadza Amzah2 and
Mohd Fauzi Mohd Nazeri1

1ICT Management Centre, MARDI Headquarters, 43400 Serdang, Selangor
2Paddy and Rice Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters,
43400 Serdang, Selangor
*E-mail: [email protected]

Rice growth is affected by several factors including pest attack, disease infection and
competition from weeds. In order to attain high rice yields, farmers need to address
these factors seriously from the sowing stage up to the ripening stage. The management
of pests, diseases and weeds in rice fields is the most important component in achieving
sustainable rice yield production. Farmers must have basic knowledge in managing
pests and diseases as well as weed problems in their rice fields. The MyPerosakPadi
application is developed to provide basic information that is easy for farmers to
understand regarding how to recognise and manage several rice insect pests, diseases
and weeds as well as other pests such as apple snails and rice field rats. The information
provided in this application will help farmers to reduce or avoid yield losses while at the
same time increasing the crop yield.

Keywords: disease management, insect management, mobile application, paddy, pest
management

39

P7

MOBILE APP: MyKompos

Mohamad Zulkifly Zakaria @ Mustafa1*, Mohamad Hariz Abdul Rahman2, Mohd Syukry
Neerawan1, Azizi Md Said3, Najwa Abdul Latif1, Mohd Fauzi Mohd Nazeri1,
Mohamad Amran Othman1

1ICT Management Centre, MARDI Headquarters, 43400 Serdang, Selangor
2Agrobiodiversity and Environment Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters,

43400 Serdang, Selangor
3Corporate and Communication Centre, MARDI Headquarters,

43400 Serdang, Selangor
*E-mail: [email protected]

Composting is one of the most environmentally friendly methods for managing waste.
It contributes towards greener agricultural practice. However, not all composts are
created equal. Different sources of waste will result in different final characteristics of
compost. While the public is aware of composting, not many people have the required
and appropriate skills to conduct proper composting. Therefore, a comprehensive
yet simple tool is needed as a platform to educate and assist the public on this topic.
Extensive research has been carried out in MARDI about composting. The technologies
are also considered mature enough to produce higher quality compost. In view of this,
MARDI MyKompos is the right application to be utilised for the interaction of knowledge
between the public and research technology. It has a complete database of all major
agriculture residues in the country to indicate which make a good combination of
compost. In addition, it provides the user with all the necessary information to conduct
the composting process with the right techniques. When the composting process has
been completed, the app will guide the user on how to evaluate the quality of the final
compost product. It is expected that the public will benefit from the development of the
app by MARDI.

Keywords: agriculture residues, compost, composting techniques, mobile application,
waste management

40 Digital Agriculture Conference (DiGAC) 2020

P8

ELECTRONIC MELIPONINI ADVANCED SYSTEM: IOT PLATFORM FOR PRECISION STINGLESS
BEE FARMING

Mohd Amri Md Yunus1,2*, Noor Hafizah Khairul2,3 Anuar Muhammad Ariff Baharuddin2,
Shafishuhaza Sahlan2, Mohammad Abdullah Siddique Amin2,

Mohammad Yusuf Been Hashem2 and Mohamad Alif Najmi Mohd Montare2

1Frontier Materials Research Alliance
2Control and Mechatronics Engineering, School of Electrical Engineering, Universiti

Teknologi Malaysia, 81310 Skudai, Johor
3Faculty of Electrical Engineering, Universiti Teknologi MARA, Cawangan Johor, Kampus

Pasir Gudang, 81750 Masai, Johor
*E-mail: [email protected]

Monitoring all the stingless honey bee hives is a very time-consuming job and one of the
biggest hassles for stingless honeybee farmers. Poor management and monitoring of
stingless bees by farmers can lead to monetary losses. Electronic Meliponini Advanced
System (EMAS) is an integrated, all-in-one stingless bee monitoring system that can
monitor, analyse and produce understandable results and then send all the data to a
mobile application. Users can access the application remotely and know everything that
is happening in the entire honey farm. Besides, the system can give alerts on burglary,
fungus growth and weather conditions/forecasts. The construction of the Internet of
Things (IoT) system for precision stingless bee farming is based on an Android app. The
data monitored by this system include the weight, internal and external temperatures
and the humidity of the beehive. The sensors used are load cell sensors and DHT22
temperature and humidity sensors. The main hardware setup was built using the
NodeMCU microcontroller. From the recorded weight, temperature, humidity and other
important information such weather conditions, the production of the stingless beehive
honey and bee bread can be recorded and monitored, as well as the safety and security
of the beehive can be ensured via protection from theft or vandalism. Moreover, the
future health status of the beehive can be estimated based on fungus growth data.
The platform utilises a novel Firebase data management structure and also has all the
functionalities of an advanced monitoring system, complete with an IoT application.

Keywords: stingless beehive, bee farming, IoT, Trigona, beehive sensing

41

P9

MEASURING RADIO FREQUENCY (RF) AND MICROWAVE PERMITTIVITY OF MARDI 76
(MRQ 76) RICE

Badaruzzaman Mohamad Noh

Engineering Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters, 43400 Serdang, Selangor
E-mail: [email protected]

The microwave heating system is widely used in the food processing and postharvest
handling of rice. However, in order to develop efficient heating energy for the heating
and drying process, the knowledge of permittivity or dielectric properties of the MARDI
76 (MRQ 76) rice is important. The penetration and power dissipation of microwave
inside the MRQ 76 rice are strongly dependent on its dielectric properties or permittivity.
Furthermore, the characterisation of changes in permittivity or dielectric properties of the
MRQ 76 rice at elevated temperatures is essential for designing the microwave heating
device and system. The permittivity or dielectric properties of MRQ 76 rice was measured
using Agilent open-ended coaxial-line probe and Agilent E5071C Network Analyser. The
temperature of the MRQ 76 rice sample was regulated using WiswCircu circulator water
bath with temperatures between 27 °C and 70 °C. The MRQ 76 rice sample was placed
into a temperature-controlled stainless steel sample holder with water jacket assembly
that was designed for permittivity measurement at different temperatures. The effect of
temperature on the dielectric properties of MRQ 76 rice as well as power dissipation and
penetration depth of microwave radiation at the ISM heating frequencies of 915 MHz and
2.45 GHz were assessed. Results indicated that both dielectric constant and dielectric
loss of MRQ 76 rice samples increased with increasing temperature. Also, the power
dissipation of microwave radiation inside the MRQ 76 rice increased with an increase
in the temperature. On the other hand, the penetration depth of microwave radiation
into the MRQ 76 rice sample decreased with increasing temperature. The results of this
study demonstrate that the permittivity and heating temperature of MRQ 76 rice play
an important role in designing the microwave heating system for MRQ 76 rice. These
dielectric properties or permittivity digital data can be stored in online cloud storage
or a big data system as an online reference for the agriculture sector in developing a
microwave heating or drying system.

Keywords: ISM heating frequency 915MHz and 2.45 GHz, MARDI 76 rice permittivity,
penetration depth, power dissipation

42 Digital Agriculture Conference (DiGAC) 2020

P10

CFD SIMULATION FOR EVAPORATIVE COOLING OPTIMISATION

Arina Mohd Noh*, Masniza Sairi and Mohd Shukry Hassan Basri

Engineering Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters, 43400 Serdang, Selangor
*E-mail: [email protected]

The evaporative cooling technique has been identified as an alternative to reduce the
temperature in cold trucks to maintain the freshness of agriculture produce during
transportation. Evaporative cooling is a process that uses the effect of evaporation as
a natural heat sink. Heat from the air is absorbed to be used as latent heat necessary
to evaporate water. Since the evaporative cooler works using a fan and water pump,
it uses much less power than most cooling systems. The refrigerated air conditioning
system, on the other hand, requires much power to maintain the refrigerated cooler.
In this study, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation was used to optimise the
design of the container with an evaporative cooling system to transport agriculture
produce, specifically vegetables. CFD is a branch of fluid mechanics that uses numerical
analysis and algorithms to solve fluid flows, heat transfer and other similar physical
problems. The objectives of the study are to analyse and compare the temperature and
airflow distribution in the evaporative cooling container for different configurations of
inlet and outlet. As the evaporative cooling technique increases the humidity of the area,
uniform temperature and airflow are critical to avoid the condensation problem and to
ensure that there is no heat trapped inside the container that can reduce the quality of
vegetables.

Keywords: airflow, CFD simulation, evaporative cooling, optimisation, temperature

43

P11

APPLICATION OF INTERNET OF THINGS TO TRANSFORM A GREENHOUSE TO A SMART
MUSHROOM HOUSE

Ten Seng Teik1*, Ganisan Krishnen2, Khairul Asfamawi Khulidin2, Mohamad Hafiz Hashim1
and Syaliyana Khairudin2

1Engineering Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters, 43400 Serdang, Selangor
2Soil Science, Water and Fertilizer Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters, 43400 Serdang,

Selangor
*E-mail: [email protected]

Mushrooms are not only nutritional foods but also medicinal foods, depending on their
variety. Therefore, the demand for mushrooms is expected to increase at about 15% per
year. Given that Pleurotus ostreatus is one of the most popular mushrooms in Malaysia,
there is a need to identify the most stable and good quality strains to increase the
production of this mushroom. Unfortunately, due to the large fluctuations in temperature
and humidity throughout the year in Malaysia, the normal greenhouse or mushroom
house is unable to maintain the requirement growth condition of mushrooms. Therefore,
a controlled environment mushroom house (CEMH) integrated with the Internet of Things
(IoT) was developed to identify the best isolate to be proposed for mass production.
The CEMH micro-climate is automatically controlled by the centre computation
unit, air conditioning system, misting system and rooftop ventilation system with the
combination of data parameters provided by humidity, temperature, light intensity and
CO2 sensors. This system is further enhanced by the integration with an IoT system and
communication through a GSM network or WIFI. The interconnection of sensors, misting
pump, rooftop ventilation fans, air conditioning system and controlling system is to
optimise the growth condition. The developed system is able to consistently control the
temperature and humidity in the range of 15 °C to 27 °C and 65% to 90%, respectively and
the light intensity in the range of 8–500 Lux to suit the growth of different mushroom
varieties.

Keywords: controlled environment, internet of things, micro-climate, mushroom house,
Pleurotus ostreatus

44 Digital Agriculture Conference (DiGAC) 2020

P12

MARDI IOT: BIOSENSOR DEVICE FOR ON-SITE RICE BLAST DISEASE DETECTION

Mohd Shahrin Ghazali1, Norhafniza Awaludin1*, Nur Azura Mohd Said1, Hazana Razali1,
Faridah Salam1, Siti Norsuha Misman2, Rashid Mat Rani1, Adlin Azlina Abdul Kadir1, Sahira

Akmar Zulkepli1, Syah Noor Muhammad Ramli1 and Muhammad Zaidi Abu Bakar1

1Biotechnology and Nanotechnology Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters,
43400 Serdang, Selangor

2Paddy and Rice Research Centre, MARDI Seberang Perai,
13200 Kepala Batas, Pulau Pinang
*E-mail: [email protected]

IoT (Internet of Things) has been adopted in agriculture not only for data mining but also
to lower the production risk, cut the management cost and reduce waste. A sensitive
sensor against pest and disease is an important tool for achieving those objectives. Rice
blast is a disease affecting paddy and has caused major losses to farmers. Caused by
Pyricularia oryzae, this disease is disseminated through its conidia. The IoT-biosensor
system developed for blast disease detection consists of two main components, i.e.,
sensor strips and a portable biosensor reader. The strips with readily immobilised
antibodies against Pyricularia oryzae conidia were developed on functionalised screen-
printed carbon electrodes (SPCEs). The modified electrode had a limit of detection (LOD)
of 103 conidia per ml with 5 µL of the sample used. The second component of the biosensor
is an Android-based portable biosensor reader with a built-in mobile application and a
GPS function that allows users to perform the testing in the field. The entire operation of
the device is performed via full touch screen access. The server will collect all the field
test data to allow users to perform further analyses such as location-mapping as well
as trend-mapping of the pattern of the occurring blast disease. The sensor application
can be performed on the field within less than 10 minutes assay with a simple sample
extraction procedure. This technology hence offers rapid and sensitive on-site rice blast
disease detection for users with minimal training such as extension agencies or even
farmers to do the testing themselves.

Keywords: IoT, biosensor, rice blast disease, Pyricularia oryzae, electrode surface
modification

45

P13

MDI HERBARIUM DIGITAL LIBRARY: HERBARIUM SPECIMENS IMAGING

Nurshahidah Mohd Rusli1*, Mohd Norfaizal Ghazalli2, Siti Sofiah Mohamad2 and
Rosliza Jajuli.2

1Agrobiodiversity and Environmental Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters,
43400 Serdang, Selangor

2Industrial Crop Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters,
43400 Serdang, Selangor

*E-mail: [email protected]

MDI Herbarium is a small herbarium in MARDI Serdang, Selangor, focusing on the
collection of specimens of agricultural crops and their wild relatives as well as weed
species. Presently, the herbarium consists of about 15 000 dried and wet plant specimens.
The digitisation of voucher specimens at MDI Herbarium commenced in 2012. Initially,
only specimens with labelled data were digitised. Consequently, specimen imaging was
carried out in December 2019. Currently, 10 662 specimens have been included in the
database and 100 specimens have been digitally photographed. The taxonomic data
for each species include all information presented on the herbarium specimen label,
namely name of the species, author citation, sub-species (if any), variety (if any), family,
subfamily, collection number, location, date of collection, habitat and the collector’s
name. Images of the specimens are photographed at 600 dpi to 800 dpi using HerbScan
machine, a scanner specified for plant imaging, linked with Silver Fast 8 software.
Photographed specimens are kept in the herbarium’s digital collection, while specimen
label data are uploaded in online Google Sheet, with the link shared only among curators
and staff members. The digital library will be upgraded into an online database after the
digitisation of the available specimens is completed. This paper aims to highlight the
technology used and to make the MDI Herbarium digital library accessible to researchers
and scientists around the world in the near future.

Keywords: digital library, digitise, herbarium, herbarium specimens, plant imaging

46 Digital Agriculture Conference (DiGAC) 2020

P14

DEVELOPMENT OF A GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE APPLICATION FOR THE ESTIMATION OF
SOIL FERTILITY TOWARDS A DIGITAL AGRICULTURE PRACTICE

Siti Noor Aliah Baharom*, Badril Hisham Abu Bakar, Jusnaini Muslimin, Ramlan Ismail,
Mohd Zamri Khairi Abdullah and Muhammad Shukri Hassan

Engineering Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters, 43400 Serdang, Selangor
*E-mail: [email protected]

A graphical user interface application has been developed to provide information on the
fertility distribution of paddy fields. An application known as SoilFertApps is installed into a
tablet computer that has an Internet connection. In general, this application allows users
to obtain the fertility information of a field plot. Users can select any paddy field locations
in the database that has been developed. The system will retrieve the soil spectra for
the selected paddy fields. The soil spectra at the locations of these selected paddy fields
determine the nutrient content, such as nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium. The values
of the nutrient contents are displayed on the application. Based on the values of these
nutrients, the soil fertility level of a specific location is classified into one of three levels of
fertility namely high, medium or low. A digital map of the nutrient content distribution for
the selected paddy plot is also displayed on the application. This SoilFertApps application
facilitates the management of nutrient distribution and soil fertility information where
previously the information was only stored digitally on a personal computer. With this
application and Internet access, users can obtain information on nutrient distribution
and soil fertility wherever they are. This application can make the management of
nutrient and soil fertility data easier, faster and more efficient.

Keywords: graphical user interface, Internet of Things, precision agriculture, soil fertility,
site-specific nutrient management.

47

P15

CHALLENGES IN DEVELOPING A REAL-TIME ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING NETWORK FOR
HIGHLAND AGROSYSTEM

Muhammad Zamir Abdul Rasid*, Intan Nadhirah Masri, Norlida Mohamed Hamim and
Noor Haslizawati Abu Bakar

Soil, Water, and Fertilizer Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters,
43400 Serdang, Selangor

*E-mail: [email protected]

Cloud computing and the Internet of Things (IoT) have been highlighted as emerging
time-saving technologies in agriculture applications. An integrated sensing system that
links data from multiple platforms is a novel way to address environmental monitoring
challenges. The assimilation of these data can generate predictive hydrological
modelling and land-use effects on the environment. However, to develop a real-time
data monitoring station, advanced computer coding and integration with sensors are
required for data transmission. Therefore, a study to develop a real-time integrated
environmental monitoring system was conducted to test the stability and reliability of
the devices to record, store and transfer data to a cloud-based server and to evaluate
the overall software and sensor compatibility in the field. The study was conducted
at Berembun Valley, Tanah Rata, Pahang, where intensive agricultural activities were
affecting Bertam River, the most crucial water source in Cameron Highlands. Three
main platforms encompassing a river monitoring system, weather monitoring system,
and geospatial system were assimilated into the cloud server. All data were displayed
in web map service and smartphone applications. Throughout 18 months of system
development, field trial and software performance, several challenges were faced such
as data transmission instability, pest disturbance, inaccurate data recorded due to
sensor sensitivity to the weather and the need for frequent system calibration. Also, a lack
of funding to further improve developed devices, software and smartphone application
was part of the constraints. In conclusion, real-time data collection in the field must
be considered to ensure the best agricultural practices are adopted by farmers, thus
reducing the contamination by agriculture non-point pollution on the environment. More
work is needed to further develop a complete IoT system as a monitoring tool for crop
production and a preventive measure against environmental pollution.

Keywords: water quality, sensor, wireless network, pollution, highland agriculture

48 Digital Agriculture Conference (DiGAC) 2020

P16

ENHANCING CATTLE PRODUCTION THROUGH REPRODUCTIVE BIOTECHNOLOGIES

Habsah Bidin1, Ahmad Johari2, Muhamad Khairul Azwan Maslan2,
Hairul Akmal Abdul Malick2 and Md Rizan Sulaiman2

1Livestock Science Research Centre, MARDI Headquarters, 43400 Serdang, Selangor
2 Livestock Science Research Centre, MARDI Kluang, 86009, Kluang, Johor
*E-mail: [email protected]

Animal biotechnologies related to reproduction have contributed to many improvements
in agriculturally important traits in livestock. Enhancing reproductive efficiency is a
prerequisite for boosting the production of meat and milk from livestock, especially in large
ruminants. Therefore, this paper outlines some of the success stories in the development
of reproductive biotechnologies in cattle production at MARDI. Techniques developed to
improve the reproduction and genetics of livestock include artificial insemination (AI),
embryo transfer (ET), in vitro fertilisation (IVF) and oocyte/embryo cryopreservation. AI
is a widely used method to exploit bulls with superior genotypes. This technology has
greatly reduced the cost of bull maintenance and possibly helped in the elimination of
venereal diseases. The main advantage of using the ET technique is that it can speed up
improvements in the quality of cattle from the maternal side. This is done by reducing
the generation interval between selection steps by having a large number of progeny
from invaluable donors. The ET technique involves superovulation, synchronisation of the
oestrous cycle, embryo recovery, classification of embryos and cryopreservation. Apart
from the superovulation technique, embryos can also be obtained by using the in vitro
fertilisation (IVF) method involving the controlled interaction of bovine sperm and oocytes
in an in vitro environment. The IVF of bovine oocytes has been applied successfully in
both livestock production and research. One advantage of bovine IVF is in producing
embryos from clinically infertile yet valuable genetic stock. For research and industry, the
IVF procedure is a powerful tool for genetic engineering, cloning, and basic physiological
studies. The combination of these reproductive technologies provides an attractive
approach for improving animal production. Thus, the successes of these technologies
and processes are crucial in order to produce viable and good quality embryos and
subsequently, healthy calf.

Keywords: cattle reproduction, productivity, reproductive biotechnologies