DA-11 tests AI drones in banana plantations 

Monitoring banana plantations is beginning to move beyond manual field inspections. In Davao Region, agriculture officials are testing whether drones and artificial intelligence can detect banana diseases earlier, before they become visible to the human eye. 

The Department of Agriculture in Region 11 (DA-11), in partnership with Japanese firm E-Supportlink Co., Ltd., is leading a pilot project that brings AI-powered drones into banana farms for early disease detection.

The banana industry remains one of Mindanao’s most important agricultural sectors, supporting both local livelihoods and export production. But according to the DA-11, its growth continues to be challenged by a more basic problem in modern farming: how to monitor large plantations quickly and accurately enough to catch diseases early.

One of the biggest threats is Fusarium wilt, a soil-borne fungal disease that affects banana plants and can slowly spread across entire plantations. Agricultural experts say it is especially difficult to control once visible symptoms appear, which makes early detection critical for both farmers and regulators.

It is this gap that the Department of Agriculture in Region 11 is now trying to address through a pilot project in selected farms in Davao del Norte, Davao de Oro, and Davao City, covering about 15 hectares in total.

DA-11 Regional Director Macario Gonzaga said the goal is to test whether new technology can detect disease earlier than traditional methods, which still rely heavily on manual inspection and field-based monitoring.

“We will see how effective the technology is in detecting banana diseases,” Gonzaga said.

The project is being implemented in partnership with Japanese firm E-Supportlink Co., Ltd., combining drone imaging with artificial intelligence to improve how farms are monitored.

The system uses drones equipped with multispectral cameras that capture data beyond what the human eye can see. These images are then processed using AI systems developed with E-Supportlink to identify early signs of plant stress and possible disease. 

In practical terms, this allows entire plantations to be scanned from above, picking up subtle changes in crop health before they become visible on the ground. The Department of Science and Technology (DOST) is also overseeing the pilot, helping evaluate how the technology performs under actual field conditions. 

Despite ongoing efforts to manage plant diseases, DA-11 officials say Fusarium wilt remains a persistent challenge across banana farms. Traditional monitoring is often slow and limited, especially in large or widely spaced plantations.

Gonzaga noted that while various solutions have been explored over the years, a fully reliable early detection system is still not in place. This is part of the reason why AI-assisted monitoring, developed with E-Supportlink Co., Ltd., is now being tested in real farming conditions. 

It is this limitation in current monitoring methods that the pilot project is now being tested against in actual farm conditions across Davao Region. If successful, the system could shift banana farming from reactive disease control to earlier intervention, helping plantations reduce losses before outbreaks spread across large areas. In a region where banana production supports both livelihoods and exports, that change could reshape how farms manage threats that are often caught too late.