AcroSeeker™: AI Pest and Disease Diagnosis Application Now Available in Laos with Nihon Nohyaku Co., Ltd.

In the target areas of Champasak and Sekong provinces, clubroot disease in cabbage cultivation and Panama disease in banana cultivation are widespread. Such damages have a significant impact on the entire Food Value Chain. The Pilot Projects therefore are designed with the aim of improving the quality and market value of these crops by providing technical training to farmers and agricultural extension workers and by verifying effective pest and disease management techniques. It is crucial that farmers and extension workers acquire the necessary knowledge and skills to appropriately diagnose and address pest and disease issues, as this is essential for maintaining crop quality and enhancing value addition.

To further promote the dissemination of these technologies, the Project collaborated with Nihon Nohyaku Co., Ltd. to release a smartphone application for diagnosing crop pests and diseases in Laos. This application is a customized version of the company’s "AcroSeeker™," which had already been developed and deployed in other countries. By taking a picture of disease spots or insects on leaves with a smartphone camera, the AI instantly diagnoses the issue and displays the name of the pest or disease, along with its ecology and countermeasures. This allows farmers and extension workers to quickly consider appropriate actions. One of the Project’s counterpart organizations, the Plant Protection Center of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) played a key role in the course of developing the application.

Currently, the application supports pest and disease diagnosis in rice, but its function will be expanded to other crops such as cabbage in the future. In parallel with the application's development, efforts will be made, led by the Department of Agricultural Extension and Cooperatives of MAF, to raise awareness among farmers and extension workers. This initiative is expected to significantly contribute to strengthening the foundation of Food Value Chain of Lao PDR.