Precision Applications, Risk Reduction, and Drones

The agricultural sector faces the challenge of applying crop protection products in an increasingly targeted, sustainable, and efficient manner. Innovative techniques such as precision spraying, spot sprayers, camera-guided systems, and, in the future, spraying drones make it possible to apply products only where they are needed. This reduces emissions into the environment and minimizes the use of pesticides, thereby helping to achieve the objectives of the Crop Protection Vision 2030.

On this page, you can read about what these technologies can do, which regulations apply, and how we are working to create more room for innovation.

Precision Applications: From Full-Field to Site-Specific

Precision techniques make it possible to apply crop protection products only in areas where a disease, pest, or weed is actually present. Examples include spot sprayers, camera-guided weed sprayers, and sprayers with individual nozzle control or section control.

From a technical standpoint, these systems represent a significant step toward site-specific crop protection: instead of treating an entire plot, you treat only the areas that require it. This reduces the use of pesticides without compromising the effectiveness of the treatment. Thanks to sensor technology, camera recognition, GPS positioning, and advanced software, modern systems are becoming increasingly accurate in determining where treatment is needed. The development of artificial intelligence, task maps, and real-time crop recognition will further expand these capabilities in the coming years.

Legal Frameworks for Precision Technologies

In principle, the same legal requirements apply to precision technologies as to conventional spraying equipment: the equipment must comply with European machinery legislation, undergo periodic inspections, and meet Dutch regulations for drift reduction. The most important frameworks are:

the Machinery Regulation (EU) 2023/1230 on the safe design and placing on the market of machinery;
the Living Environment Activities Decree (BAL) for emission control and drift reduction;
the Statutory Instructions for Use (WG) of the crop protection product;
the mandatory SKL inspection of spraying equipment;
the requirement for closed-tank systems (CTS) starting in 2027 for certain applications of liquid crop protection products.

A precision application method may only be used if it complies with the Statutory Instructions for Use of the product in question. The maximum dosage, the number of applications, and any requirements regarding water volume or concentration remain fully in effect. Site-specific application therefore does not mean that you may use higher dosages locally than what is legally permitted.

Room for innovation

We view precision technologies as an important tool for making crop protection more sustainable. Spot sprayers, camera-based weed recognition, individual nozzle control, and sensor-controlled applications apply pesticides only where necessary, thereby contributing to reduced pesticide use, lower emissions, and improved application quality.

In many cases, existing regulations allow for the use of precision technologies, but they do not always keep pace with the speed at which the technology is developing. We are therefore actively committed to expanding opportunities for applying innovative precision technologies.

This is not limited to the national level. Important standards development is also taking place internationally: within ISO/TC 23/SC 6 (Equipment for Crop Protection), Working Group 30 (WG30) is developing international test methods for Targeted Spray Application—techniques that are applied only after a target object has been detected using, for example, cameras, sensors, or task maps. Such standards make it possible to evaluate innovative techniques worldwide in the same way in terms of performance, accuracy, and potential reduction in chemical use, and thus play an important role in their acceptance by governments, regulatory agencies, and users. Through international standardization, we actively contribute to this technical framework.

Performance-Based Approach

We also advocate for a shift in the policy and assessment framework: from an approach focused primarily on the product itself to one that is more performance-oriented. Traditionally, regulations and approvals have focused on the properties of the product itself. However, it is not only the product but also the way it is applied that determines the ultimate risk to people, the environment, and nature. Innovative techniques demonstrably reduce emissions, drift, and exposure of users and bystanders; when these performance metrics are objectively established, they should be explicitly taken into account in the assessment of risks, conditions of use, and authorization decisions. Such a performance-based approach stimulates innovation and creates opportunities for new techniques, while maintaining an undiminished high level of protection for people, the environment, and nature.

Innovative techniques as risk-mitigation measures

A concrete example of this performance-oriented approach is that innovative application techniques are increasingly viewed as risk mitigation measures. During the approval process, the Ctgb assesses the risks to humans, animals, and the environment and may, if necessary, prescribe conditions of use or risk mitigation measures.

Precision applications lead to lower emissions, drift, and exposure, and can therefore help manage risks that are currently often mitigated through generic measures such as larger crop-free zones, additional drift-reduction requirements, or usage restrictions. Together with the Ctgb, the government, research institutions, and other stakeholders, we are investigating how the performance of these techniques can be objectively assessed and how they can be factored into risk assessments and authorization procedures. The goal: a system in which demonstrably effective innovations not only contribute to greater sustainability but can also be deployed as recognized risk-mitigation measures. This development is thus aligned with the broader European movement toward more targeted crop protection.

Drones as a Future Spraying Platform

In addition to ground-based precision techniques, there is growing international interest in drones as a platform for applying crop protection products. Drones can be a solution when fields are temporarily inaccessible—for example, due to wet conditions or sensitive crop stages—and can be targeted specifically at sub-plots, hotspots, or hard-to-reach locations. They completely prevent soil compaction and rutting and, thanks to their flexibility, can be quickly deployed in response to acute pest pressure or disease outbreaks.

Current Legal Situation

However, the use of drones for crop protection products is not yet permitted in the Netherlands. This ban is set forth in Article 29 of the Crop Protection Products and Biocides Decree. Therefore, both technical and legal developments are necessary for actual implementation. Furthermore, drones must comply with European aviation regulations and specific technical standards for construction and performance. Key standards include:

NEN-ISO 23117-1:2023: Environmental and safety requirements for unmanned spraying systems;
NEN-ISO 23117-2:2025: Test methods for the width distribution of spray drones.

Within ISO, work is also underway to develop standards for assessing spray drift from drones. Step by step, this is leading to the creation of an international standards framework for the objective assessment of unmanned spraying systems.

Risks and Performance

Our top priority is that the use of spraying drones must result in a risk profile that is equivalent to or lower than that of existing ground-based spraying techniques, both in terms of user safety and environmental emissions. For drones, this means, among other things:

demonstrably safe flight operations;
preventing application outside the target area using GPS and geofencing;
a drift reduction that is at least equivalent to existing certified techniques;
a spray pattern width comparable to that of ground-based sprayers.

When assessing drift reduction, it makes sense to align with the existing Dutch system of drift-reducing techniques (DRT), which is already used for field and orchard sprayers.

We support the development and use of spraying drones when three conditions are met:

compliance with all applicable laws and regulations and relevant ISO standards;
a demonstrably equivalent or lower risk profile for people, the environment, and nature;
an application quality comparable to existing ground-based spraying technology.

Future Outlook

Precision technologies are now available and are being adopted on an increasingly large scale. In the Netherlands, drones are still in an early stage of development and regulation, but could eventually serve as a valuable addition to the existing fleet of machinery. We support both the further development of precision technologies and the responsible introduction of spraying drones, provided that innovations demonstrably contribute to reducing emissions, drift, pesticide use, and exposure to humans and the environment.

In the long term, innovative technologies that demonstrably lead to an equivalent or lower risk profile must also be given the opportunity to realize that added value in practice. In this way, technological innovations make an important contribution to modern, productive, and socially responsible agriculture, in which food production and the protection of people, the environment, and nature go hand in hand.