Coordinators of the 2025 Agritechnica Innovation Awards report they received 251 entries of which 234 were approved for the list of exhibition innovations. The DLG Innovation Jury has awarded 2 innovations with gold and 22 innovations with the silver medal.

Award Criteria

An Agritechnica Innovation Gold medal is conferred on an innovation demonstrating a new concept in which the functionality has changed decisively and gives rise to a new process or marks a substantial improvement to an existing process, according to a news release detailing the awards. Key criteria for the gold medal, according to DLG, includes: practical significance at farm level; operating profit- ability and efficiency benefits; improvement on the environment and energy consumption; work load reduction and improved health and safety.

An Agritechnica Innovation Silver medal is conferred on an innovation for an existing product such that a significant improvement in functionality and process is achieved. Key criteria for Silver medals include: relevance at farm level; work load reduction and enhanced work quality; improved reliability; and positive impact on environmental sustainability and energy efficiency.

Gold Medal Innovation Award Winners

Claas received the Gold medal for its overall concept of a 70 t big baler. The company reports the concept which has been completely redeveloped by Claas is designed for a combination of high throughputs with constantly high bale densities and secure binding, and establishes entirely new performance dimensions for this machine type.

Line Traction by Müller Landmaschinen, jointly developed with Aebi & Co. AG Maschinenfabrik also received a Gold medal. According to the company, the completely new 'Line Traction’ drive concept developed by Müller Landmaschinen and Aebi & Co. AG Maschinenfabrik replaces the previously usual longitudinal and transverse differentials with a hydrostatic system in the planetary final drives. For the first time, this enables each wheel to be driven at the correct speed when cornering, which vastly improves traction and significantly increases safety at the critical limits.

Agritechnica award winner Claas image.png

Recipients of the Agritechnica Innovation Awards have been announced, with 2 innovations winning gold medals and 22 innovations receiving silver medals. Shown here is Claas’ gold medal award-winning concept of a 70 t big baler. Source: Agritechnica

Silver Medal Innovation Award Winners

A total of 22 innovations received Silver Medal Innovation awards and summaries of those as provided by the companies follow.

  • Tractor Assisted Guidance System (TAGS) by Deutz-Fahr Deutschland GmbH, developed jointly with Stereolabs. With the Deutz-Fahr TAGS, the company reports it is significantly advancing the electronics architecture of tractors and therefore enabling the integration of various assistance systems, some of which are familiar from passenger cars and lorries. This contributes to safety when travelling on the road and manoeuvring on the farm, and simultaneously establishes the prerequisites for autonomous functions in the future.
  • A predictive, completely adaptive drivetrain management system for stepless tractor gearboxes from Claas. The predictive, adaptive drive train management system for stepless tractor gearboxes that CLAAS has developed for its new large Axion tractors combines efficiency performance maps for the engine, gearbox and hydraulic system with an algorithm that is capable of learning. Particularly the 'Auto Load Anticipation', for instance, is able to proactively adapt the engine speed to load jumps and therefore deliver the power required in any situation with minimum consumption.
  • The Grimme Landmaschinenfabrik Company’s Go-Clean concept is described as easy and safe cleaning for rotary tillers. The Go-Clean concept from Grimme for rotary tillers in potato growing minimises soil adhesion by using PU as the housing material. In addition, the housing can be hydraulically opened to its full working width for the first time, providing the user with safe and unobstructed access to the working tools for cleaning and maintenance work – with significant advantages for field hygiene, work management and work safety.
  • Lemken iQblue Fan Automation and automated fan control, according to the company, allows it to solve the problem of incorrectly set air volumes and undetected blockages that is so far familiar with all pneumatic seed drills. The measurement function factors in machine-specific differences such as line routing, the line length and line resistances, offering genuine added value.
  • VarioSmart by Rauch Landmaschinenfabrik is an improved boundary spreading system which infinitely regulates the boundary speed on fertiliser spreaders with a mechanical PTO drive, as a result of which more precise spreading is possible at field boundaries. This enables fertiliser to be saved, yields to be increased and environmental impacts to be reduced.
  • The ZA-TS 01 AutoSpread from Amazonen-Werke H. Dreyer SE & Co. makes fertilizer spreaders self-adjusting, thereby consigning the regular deployment of spreading trays to the past. This development from AMAZONE enables the spreading direction and, for the first time, also the throw, to be registered autonomously, allowing the spreading pattern to be continuously validated. This allows fertilisers to be applied with greater efficiency, as a result of which costs and working time are reduced and the environment is protected at the same time.
  • Bioselect RC 250 from BÖRGER GmbH Drehkolbenpumpen offers an integrated Multi Disc vario on the new Bioselect RC2050 press screw separator enabling adjustment to the medium to be separated while offering high throughput at the same time, as a result of which labour time, energy costs and effort can be significantly reduced.
  • The Smart-Hill product manufactured by Einböck and jointly developed with together with Claas E-Systems determines the slope gradient during hoeing by means of a high-resolution Claas Culti Cam stereo camera and automatically keeps the hoeing implement at a 90° angle to the crop row via an axis that is actuated using this information. Smart-Hill establishes the basis and a practical solution for uncompromising precision and higher working speeds in mechanical weed control under difficult conditions.
  • Horsch’s Proactive BoomControl system optimizes the spraying distance by analysing the target surface in the near environment with radar sensors and using the collected data for proactive boom control. This minimises the risk of errors and achieves an optimum spraying distance even on sharply ascending or descending terrain and under difficult conditions.
  • With Yield EyeQ, Gehringhoff has established a decision-making support system that is able to register and evaluate changes in the settings of the harvesting header for the first time. This information, which is already important for the operator today, forms the basis for future action recommendations, up to and including the automation of harvesting header optimisation.
  • Schumacher’s EasyCut3 (EC3) QuickFit cutting system does without holes in the knife blades and guards, thereby increasing stability and significantly reducing the risk of injury during maintenance and repair. EasyCut III therefore makes a significant contribution to increasing work safety and operating reliability during grain harvesting.
  • New Holland Corn Header Automation registers losses and machine statuses at the picking header, analyses the picking intensity with the aid of AI and adjusts it optimally to the harvesting conditions. This minimises pick-up losses and increases the efficiency of the combine harvester while relieving the operator at the same time.
  • Grimme, which worked jointly with Ricon on its development, reports that for the first time, the Riconda sieve web concept for root crop harvesters consists of sieve web elements that can be assembled in modular form. The patented sieve web, described as a wear-resistant and maintenance-free connection system, manages without segment-specific lock parts and promises significantly less wear as well as easier maintenance and repair.
  • Krone’s OptiSet on the Krone Vendro ensures a more consistent feed drying process, particularly in the case of heterogeneous grassland growth, and therefore increased efficiency and quality in feed harvesting — by vastly simplifying spreading angle adjustment at the push of a button from the cab.
  • Reporting on Silver medal awards for Claas, Fendt and New Holland, the detailed award announcement notes that the following 3 innovations have each received a Silver innovation medal, and represent a milestone in the real-time quality analysis of chopped material. They support and assist the driver with a powerful optimisation and safety tool, increase throughput and reduce both wear and fuel consumption.As they share a common underlying concept, the award judges note they are explained together in a single description.
  • The Cemos Auto Chopping assistance system from Claas, the ForageQualityCam from Fendt and the ForageCam from New Holland analyse the chopped material using an AI-supported camera and provide the driver with a significant quality characteristic for maize silage in the form of the Corn Silage Processing Score — for optimally convertible feed while simultaneously relieving strain on the driver and resources.
  • Similarly, another pair of award winners were combined as each of the innovations share the same underlying concept and, as such, are presented together under a single description.
  • The EasyMatch from Amazonen-Werke H. Dreyer SE & Co. is fertilizer recognition by means of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the Fertieye is described by Sky Agriculture as a smartphone image analysis for fertilizer spreader adjustment under field conditions. These 2 innovations are further described as practical, smartphone-based solutions that use image analysis and AI to determine the characteristics of a mineral fertiliser and derive the appropriate spreader settings. Both developments make fertilizer application more accurate, cost-effective and environmentally-friendly.
  • The Jaguar 1000 overall concept from Claas has the potential to significantly raise performance limits and therefore represents a significant evolution. In the Jaguar 1000 forage harvester, CLAAS has refined crucial details of the technology that is familiar so far at key points. On the whole, reports Claas, the overall concept therefore significantly raises the performance limits for forage harvesters.
  • The Intuitu 2.0 Smart Pressure Assistant for Nokian Tyres Soil King developed by Nokian Heavy Tires uses the data from tyre sensors in the manufacturer's Soil King VF tyres to determine the axle load during driving and suggests the correct tyre pressure for use on the road and for working on the field. This simplifies working with tyre pressure control systems and establishes a technical basis for their subsequent automation.
  • Arnold NextG’s DUXALPHA helps to avoid gaps and overlaps on hilly terrain and thereby supports precise processing. The system therefore offers a basis for autonomously operated machines on slopes.

In reporting on this year’s award recipients selected by the DLG Jury, the Agritechnica organizers reports that with more than 31,000 members, DLG draws on an international network of some 3,000 food and agricultural experts. DLG operates with subsidiaries in 10 countries and also organizes over 30 regional agricultural and livestock exhibitions worldwide. Headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany, DLG conducts practical trials and tests to keep its members informed of the latest developments, and is a politically independent and non-profit organisation. DLG notes that the organization bridges the gap between theory and practice, as evidenced by more than 40 working groups of farmers, academics, agricultural equipment companies and organisations that continually compare advances in knowledge in specific areas such as irrigation and precision farming.

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