Improving Food Security and Agricultural Competitiveness in Peru (IFSACP) is a project that was brokered by the British Embassy in Peru and project managed by the UK’s Satellite Applications Catapult. Part of this project was focused on the Piura region of Peru the largest table grape producing region in the country totalling over 4,000 hectares. The main objective of the project was to establish the use of Sentinel 1&2 and other satellite data for driving agricultural performance.

Members of the team visited the region to work with the growers to get a better understanding of their needs. Growers in this region face particular problems relating to climate, pests and disease. We ended up using 17 Landsat 8 optical images, 60 Sentinel 1 radar images, 2 Sentinel 2 optical images, and 2 RapidEye images to carry out our assessments.

During the project we were able to use SAR backscatter and optical NDVI to identify differences in crop vigour as well as understand and map the effects of pests and disease. These might appear as gaps in the canopy, possibly caused by nematode infestation, or unexpected reduction in vigour due to spider mite infestation. Grape growers need up to date information on crop status to plan management. Earth Observation can provide rapid assessment at a parcel level but it needs to be linked to local agronomic information such as growth stage, growth regulator applications and harvesting times. Only then is it possible to understand meaningful differences in crop vigour and do something about it.