What’s the Egg in Your AgTech Product?
Editor’s note: In a recent issue of Upstream Ag Professional, agribusiness analyst Shane Thomas says identifying where to introduce elements that keep farmers engaged and in control — akin to the “egg” in cake mixes — will be essential for the successful adoption of new agricultural technologies. Here’s a summary of that article:
In 1929, the invention of a powdered cake mix revolutionized home baking by allowing bakers to quickly make cakes by simply adding water. Despite its initial success, sales plateaued as many bakers preferred baking from scratch, seeing cake mixes as a form of cheating. To address this, psychologist and marketing consultant Ernest Dichter suggested that the mixes require bakers to add their own eggs, which increased emotional investment and acceptance of the product. This concept is known as the IKEA effect, where people value things more if they contribute effort to creating them.
This psychological insight has significant applications in agriculture. Farmers, like home bakers, take pride in their work and decision-making. The challenge for agribusiness professionals is to introduce technology in a way that maintains farmers’ sense of control and pride. Over-automation, such as with autonomous tractors and irrigation technology, can risk removing farmers’ emotional investment and feeling of control over outcomes, similar to how bakers felt about early cake mixes.
In agtech, reducing friction is often seen as beneficial. However, just as friction can increase value in online shopping by allowing customers to feel in control, strategic friction can be crucial in farming. Ensuring farmers feel involved and in control can enhance their acceptance of new technologies.
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For instance, Large Language Models (LLMs) in agribusiness software should act as copilots rather than agents. Instead of fully automating tasks like customer outreach, LLMs can assist agronomists by creating draft emails and marketing materials that agronomists can review and adjust. This preserves the agronomists’ judgment and involvement, similar to how adding eggs preserved bakers’ engagement with cake mixes.
The key takeaway for agribusiness is to understand the workflow and emotional journey of farmers. Identifying where to introduce elements that keep farmers engaged and in control — akin to the “egg” in cake mixes — will be essential for the successful adoption of new agricultural technologies.
For more in-depth coverage, visit Upstream Ag.
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