Pulse Brain · Growing Health Evidence Index
Tier 3 — Observational / field trialIndustry / policy reportConventional

Human vs machine: The quest for BYDV monitoring accuracy in cereals

Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board · 2025

Read source ↗ All evidence

Summary

This 2025 AHDB evaluation compares machine learning and automated detection systems for barley yellow dwarf virus surveillance against conventional human field assessment in UK cereal production. The work addresses a methodological gap in disease monitoring by benchmarking algorithmic performance and documenting practical barriers to adoption in operational farm settings. Findings are intended to support the development of decision-support tools and inform evidence-based disease management protocols for UK cereal growers.

Regional applicability

This study was conducted in the United Kingdom and directly addresses UK cereal disease management contexts, AHDB priorities, and practical adoption challenges for UK farmers. Findings should be directly applicable to UK cereal production systems and disease surveillance policy.

Key measures

Detection accuracy, sensitivity and specificity of machine learning algorithms versus human assessment; practical constraints to field adoption of automated systems

Outcomes reported

The study compared machine learning and automated detection systems for barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV) monitoring against conventional human field assessment in UK cereals. It evaluated algorithmic performance and identified practical constraints to adoption of automated surveillance tools.

Theme
Measurement & metrics
Subject
Arable cropping systems
Study type
Research
Study design
Comparative field trial / Technology evaluation
Source type
Industry/policy report
Status
Published
Geography
United Kingdom
System type
Arable cereals
Catalogue ID
IRmqgglw22-eef1e9

Topic tags

Pulse AI · ask about this record

Dig deeper with Pulse AI.

Pulse AI has read the whole catalogue. Ask about this record, its theme, or how the findings apply to UK farming and policy — every answer cites the underlying studies.