As of June 2025, more than 500,000 agricultural drones have been deployed worldwide, saving an estimated 330 million metric tons of water and reducing carbon emissions by 42.58 million tons, according to the White Paper on the Agricultural Drone Industry (2024/2025). The report was issued by Farmers' Daily and DJI Agriculture and outlines development trends, technological applications, and regulatory changes.
Ning Qiwen, publisher of Farmers' Daily, said: "Agricultural drones are changing traditional production models with technology and becoming a new engine for ensuring food security."
The report states that in 2024, Chinese agricultural drones completed work covering more than 173 million hectares, generating a market value of about US$1.8 billion and creating employment for nearly 500,000 people. More than 12,000 female operators participated in plant protection activities, while more young people returned to rural areas to establish businesses in the sector.
Applications have expanded beyond crop spraying to include transportation, sowing, fertilization, and crop monitoring. In Zigui County, Hubei province, a DJI T100 drone transported 85 kilograms of oranges in two minutes. In Yunnan province, a dispatch system for bananas reduced transportation losses from 30 per cent to less than 5 per cent. In Sichuan province, drones are now used to transport bamboo in mountainous terrain.
Drones are also being deployed throughout the growing season. In cornfields in Inner Mongolia, their use for weeding and crop management has increased yields by more than 10 per cent, the report said.
Policy frameworks are also developing. In China, regulations have been updated to support drone operations, while national support for the low-altitude economy has positioned agricultural drones as a strategic tool. The 2025 No. 1 Central Document included low-altitude technology alongside artificial intelligence and big data for the first time.
Other countries have also streamlined rules. Brazil's civil aviation authority simplified registration, the European Union adopted international spraying standards, the United States Federal Aviation Administration added some DJI models to its exemption list, and Australia issued guidelines for more flexible drone use on private land.
Li Weiguo, president of the China Agricultural Mechanization Association, said that the regulation needs further refinement. He noted that "existing rules, such as the maximum flight altitude of 30 meters, could be made more flexible to better accommodate the scale and variety of agricultural drone applications."
Source: ChinaDaily