A review of digital decision support systems in European cereal crop production: Applications, opportunities, challenges, and critical success factors

Abstract

CONTEXT As technology evolves, digital decision support systems (DSSs) are increasingly implemented worldwide. This is especially true in agriculture, where a growing global population and environmental pressures are leading to a situation where more food must be produced whilst environmental sustainability remains at the forefront. Many digital DSSs have been created for cereal crop production, however implementation of these DSSs remains limited. OBJECTIVE This review examines the application, opportunities, and challenges of these systems within European rainfed cereal crop production, aiming to identify how recent advancements have the potential to enhance specific agricultural applications, including variety selection, soil moisture prediction, and pest management, and to identify gaps and areas for improvement in the development of DSSs. METHODS A review of the literature was conducted. To ensure that future developed DSSs achieve high adoption rates, this review sets out critical success factors in the context of European rainfed cereal crop production. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS Findings reveal that DSSs are widely available but in many cases currently lack high adoption rates. A system must be flexible, accessible, and highly relevant to local conditions for adoption to occur. However, the most essential factor for overcoming current adoption plateaus is the shifting from a technology-first approach to one that involves the end-user in the design process. SIGNIFICANCE The implementation of these factors by DSS developers can lead to delivering tangible value to the cereal production sector, helping end-users to move towards making data-driven decisions.