Smart agriculture as source of sustainability in intensive greenhouse production

Abstract The article addresses the interaction between smart agriculture and sustainability within the specific context of intensive greenhouse agriculture in southeast Spain. Combining a literature review and expert interviews, the methodology is based on a qualitative data analysis, whose main goal is to gain a comprehensive understanding of the phenomenon under study. The results identify three key areas of technology that strongly influence this type of agriculture. The first relates to soil, water savings, sensor utilization, and environmental improvement, while the second encompasses robot use, labor reduction, resulting cost improvement, and economic sustainability. Finally, the third group, albeit of lesser importance, links artificial intelligence with ethical issues such as data control, usage, and technological dependence. In summary, the application of smart agriculture is projected to have positive impacts on economic and environmental sustainability, relegating the social dimension to a more distant level. This imbalance suggests that social and ethical aspects could be subordinated to more immediate benefits. The results also suggest that the need for future investments could create polarization in the sector. Not all farmers and businesses can afford these investments, leading to progressive deterioration and even abandonment of agricultural activities in some cases.