K
Kathleen Martin
Guest
When siblings Sarah and Jaron Hinkley moved back to their hometown of La Junta, CO, they were not sure what to do with their professional experiences in the food industry and drone technology services, respectively. Sarah and her husband Bryan considered starting a restaurant until Jaron came to them with an idea to use his drone technology expertise to help local farmers. The trio quickly realized that drone technology could greatly impact the agricultural industry, especially as farmers face decline in labor and resources. By creating Barn Owl Drone Services, Sarah, Jaron and Bryan can offer “table to farm” services (instead of Sarah and Bryan’s original plan of “farm to table” dining) by sitting down with farmers to learn about what they need, what challenges they face and determine how to provide them the technology they need to make their work more efficient.
Barn Owl was awarded $200,000 from the Advanced Industries Early Stage Capital and Retention Grant grant in 2021. This award, along with other funding from investors and matching grants, has allowed Barn Owl to grow its reach from the potato farms in San Luis Valley to corn fields in Olathe and provide valuable services to farmers across Colorado. These services include crop analysis, mapping, monitoring and testing; photography and videography for marketing needs; volume metric measurements and heavy machinery inspections. Perhaps most unique is Barn Owl’s fleet of robotic weeding units, which cut weeds that interfere with crops. This allows farmers to cut down on labor costs and avoid using chemicals or pulling weeds which disturbs the soil. Barn Owl will also hire and train robotic operators to manage the drones, creating employment opportunities for highly skilled workers in rural areas.
Ultimately, Barn Owl’s goal is to improve the lives of farmers, their families and the food we all eat. Barn Owl is grateful for the opportunity to be supported by this grant and by the State of Colorado, which Sarah sees as setting a standard for other states to invest in agriculture and business. As a new mom and running a woman founded and owned business, she knows it takes a community to not only raise a baby, but also a business.
Continue reading: https://oedit.colorado.gov/blog-post/barn-owl-blazing-new-trails-in-agriculture-with-ai-technology
Barn Owl was awarded $200,000 from the Advanced Industries Early Stage Capital and Retention Grant grant in 2021. This award, along with other funding from investors and matching grants, has allowed Barn Owl to grow its reach from the potato farms in San Luis Valley to corn fields in Olathe and provide valuable services to farmers across Colorado. These services include crop analysis, mapping, monitoring and testing; photography and videography for marketing needs; volume metric measurements and heavy machinery inspections. Perhaps most unique is Barn Owl’s fleet of robotic weeding units, which cut weeds that interfere with crops. This allows farmers to cut down on labor costs and avoid using chemicals or pulling weeds which disturbs the soil. Barn Owl will also hire and train robotic operators to manage the drones, creating employment opportunities for highly skilled workers in rural areas.
Ultimately, Barn Owl’s goal is to improve the lives of farmers, their families and the food we all eat. Barn Owl is grateful for the opportunity to be supported by this grant and by the State of Colorado, which Sarah sees as setting a standard for other states to invest in agriculture and business. As a new mom and running a woman founded and owned business, she knows it takes a community to not only raise a baby, but also a business.
Continue reading: https://oedit.colorado.gov/blog-post/barn-owl-blazing-new-trails-in-agriculture-with-ai-technology
