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FATIMA · Project

Smart Fertilizer and Water Maps That Cut Farm Input Costs

foodPilotedTRL 6
fatima-h2020.eu

Imagine farming with a GPS-style map that tells you exactly where each field needs more water or fertilizer — and where you're wasting both. FATIMA combined satellite images with ground-level smart sensors to create an online mapping tool that does exactly that. They tested it on real farms across 8 European countries, covering everything from olive groves to Dutch greenhouses. The result is a system that helps farmers spend less on water and nutrients while growing the same or better crops.

By the numbers
8
pilot demonstration areas across Europe
22
consortium partners
12
countries represented
8
SMEs in the consortium
33
total project deliverables
EUR 7,966,697
EU research investment
The business problem

What needed solving

European farmers spend heavily on water and fertilizer but often apply them uniformly, wasting inputs where soil already has enough and under-supplying where crops need more. This guesswork hurts both the bottom line and the environment, especially as EU regulations tighten around nutrient runoff and water use. Farm managers and irrigation operators need field-specific, data-driven maps that tell them exactly where to apply what — and how much.

The solution

What was built

FATIMA built a modular precision farming platform that merges satellite Earth observation data with ground-level wireless sensor networks into a central webGIS (online mapping tool). Key outputs include maps of fertilizer and water requirements designed to feed directly into precision farming machinery, crop water consumption monitoring tools, and water-energy footprint calculators — all delivered as a prototype with a user guide and validated across 8 European pilot sites.

Audience

Who needs this

AgTech companies building precision farming or variable-rate application platformsIrrigation district managers and water utilities in agricultural regionsAgronomic advisory firms and cooperative farm consultantsLarge-scale crop producers looking to cut fertilizer and water costsAgricultural insurance companies needing crop-condition monitoring data
Business applications

Who can put this to work

Precision Agriculture Technology
SME
Target: AgTech companies selling farm management software or variable-rate application equipment

If you are an AgTech company looking to add satellite-based crop advisory features to your platform — this project developed a modular technology package integrating Earth observation with wireless sensor networks into a webGIS, tested across 8 pilot areas in Europe. The maps of fertilizer and water requirements are designed to feed directly into precision farming machinery, giving you a ready-made data pipeline to enhance your product.

Irrigation and Water Management
any
Target: Irrigation scheme operators and water utilities serving agricultural regions

If you are an irrigation district manager struggling to allocate water efficiently across hundreds of farms — this project built crop water consumption maps and water-energy footprint tools tested at scales from individual farms to full river basins. The 22-partner consortium across 12 countries validated these tools in diverse climates from Mediterranean Spain to temperate Netherlands, covering the range of conditions you likely face.

Agricultural Advisory Services
SME
Target: Agronomic consulting firms and cooperative advisory services

If you are an agronomic advisor helping farmers optimize fertilizer use but relying on manual soil sampling and guesswork — this project created an online spatial decision-support system that generates fertilizer requirement maps from satellite and sensor data. With 8 pilot demonstrations and a central webGIS prototype with user guide, the tools are designed for non-specialist users in the farm and agribusiness sector.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to implement this system on my farm or in my product?

The project does not publish per-farm or per-license pricing. The technology package is modular, combining Earth observation data (some publicly available via Copernicus) with wireless sensor networks and a webGIS platform. Implementation costs would depend on which modules you adopt and the scale of sensor deployment needed.

Can this work at industrial scale beyond small pilot fields?

Yes — FATIMA was explicitly designed and tested at multiple scales, from individual farms to irrigation schemes, aquifers, and full river basins. The 8 pilot areas across Spain, Italy, Greece, Netherlands, Czech Republic, Austria, France, and Turkey represent key European intensive crop production systems. The webGIS platform was built to handle these varying scales.

What is the IP situation — can I license or use this technology?

The project was funded as a Research and Innovation Action (RIA) under Horizon 2020 with EUR 7,966,697 in EU funding. IP is typically shared among consortium partners. With 9 industry partners including 8 SMEs in the consortium, there are likely commercialization-oriented partners you could approach for licensing discussions.

Does this comply with EU agricultural and environmental regulations?

FATIMA included a dedicated policy analysis component based on indicator, accounting, and footprint approaches. The project explicitly addresses sustainable agriculture in the context of integrated agri-environment management, which aligns with EU Common Agricultural Policy requirements for nutrient and water management.

How long would it take to integrate this into existing farm management systems?

The project ran for 3 years (2015-2018) and produced 33 deliverables including a central webGIS prototype with a user guide. The modular architecture means you can integrate specific components (e.g., fertilizer maps for precision machinery) without adopting the entire platform. Based on available project data, the maps are designed to feed directly into existing precision farming machinery.

Is there ongoing support or has the project ended?

FATIMA officially closed in February 2018. However, the 22-partner consortium across 12 countries includes 9 industry partners who may have continued developing commercial versions. The project website at fatima-h2020.eu may have information about follow-up activities or spin-off products.

Consortium

Who built it

The FATIMA consortium is unusually large with 22 partners across 12 countries, signaling broad European validation rather than a narrow lab experiment. With 9 industry partners (41% of the consortium) and 8 SMEs, there is strong commercial DNA alongside the 5 universities and 7 research institutes. The coordinator is Universidad de Castilla - La Mancha in Spain, a region with significant irrigated agriculture. The geographic spread — from Mediterranean countries (ES, IT, EL, TR, PT, FR) to northern Europe (NL, AT, CZ, DE) and eastern Europe (BG, LV) — means the technology was stress-tested across very different farming conditions, water availability, and crop types, making it more credible for deployment anywhere in Europe.

How to reach the team

Universidad de Castilla - La Mancha (Spain) — contact via SciTransfer for warm introduction to the research team

Order a report on this consortiumSee UNIVERSIDAD DE CASTILLA - LA MANCHA profile →
Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to integrate FATIMA's precision fertilizer and water mapping into your AgTech platform or farm operations? SciTransfer can connect you directly with the right consortium partner for licensing or collaboration.

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