In partnership with Kilimo and Nuup, Intel is advancing its goals of achieving a Net Positive Water balance, restoring and returning more freshwater to the environment than the company takes for its operations.
Recently, Intel allied with two companies that use information technology and telecommunications to improve productivity in Mexican and Latin American agriculture.
The first one is Kilimo, a Latin American company dedicated to making water use for irrigation in agricultural areas more efficient by implementing technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Big Data.
On the other hand, Nuup is a Mexican social organization dedicated to providing technology, advice and partnerships to accelerate the transition to more sustainable and inclusive agri-food production and trade models.
The collaboration between Intel, Kilimo and Nuup will initially impact 30 farmers in the Lerma Basin, the most valuable water source for the Guadalajara region, where Intel has its main operation in Mexico. It will cover 550 hectares of cultivated land, with an estimated saving of around 35.3 million gallons of water yearly.
Impact on decision-making
The solution created by Kilimo accompanies farmers throughout the production cycle through an easily adoptable digital platform. Using climate, satellite and soil data, along with AI and Big Data, the platform provides precise and reliable information that aids in decision-making for farming.
The solution and platform offered by Kilimo are powered by data generated and entered by the farmers and processed on Intel servers and compute units, which helps optimize increasingly targeted irrigation and water use recommendations.
In recognition of this collaborative cycle, Kilimo provides economic compensation to each farmer based on the water savings generated.
Andrea Ramos, Sustainability Leader, Kilimo Latin America, said: “We are very excited about projects like this, where we can work collectively with local actors such as Intel GDC and Nuup to safeguard the water security of the Lerma Basin. Undoubtedly, agriculture has enormous opportunities to contribute in that direction and the innovation of this model is that farmers receive the necessary incentives to improve water efficiency for irrigation.”
Through financial support for this initiative, Intel reaffirms its commitment to protecting local water resources, supporting the communities where it operates and accelerating environmental technology solutions.
Reaching Net Positive Water is one of 2030 goals of Intel and this has become even more important in Mexico in recent years. Net Positive Water means restoring and returning more freshwater to the environment than Intel takes for its operations.
Regional Projection
According to data from the World Resources Institute (WRI), Mexico faces significant water challenges, with nearly 40% of the available supply extracted each year, when the same organization states that a healthy water extraction rate for a country is between 10% and 20% to allow for a margin of response to events such as droughts or other extraordinary situations.
Additionally, agriculture accounts for nearly 76% of the annual water consumption, making it one of the sectors that contributes the most to water extraction. Now more than ever, it is crucial for large companies to make efforts to increase the savings of this vital resource for everyone and to protect the ecosystems in which they operate.
Alejandra Ramcke, Manager of Public Affairs, Social Responsibility and Community Relations, Intel Mexico, said: “Generating a positive impact on our water resources is not just about reducing water usage, but is about investing in water basins to support long-term supply and resilience. This type of collaboration aligns with our Intel RISE strategy, which includes achieving Net Positive Water by 2030 across the entire cycle of our operations and extends to seeking an impact on the community.
“It is a challenge that requires attention from each one, so we call on more companies and farmers to use technologies and innovations like this to jointly address one of the most relevant problems for our society.”
In 2021, Intel achieved Net Positive Water in three countries where it operates: US, India and Costa Rica. In addition to funding water restoration projects, Intel continues to invest in water conservation in operations. In 2021, conservation efforts enabled the company to save 9.3 billion gallons of water globally, representing a 114% increase in the last two years.
With the project with Kilimo, Intel plans to achieve its Net Positive Water goal in Mexico by 2023, well ahead of the established date (2030).
The mission of Intel has always been to improve the lives of all people on the planet through technology. The implementation of the Kilimo platform in local agricultural communities is a tangible example of how technology, beyond increasing water use efficiency, is also a tool to address the most complex problems worldwide.
