Precision irrigation market seen hitting $20.98 billion by 2030

The Business Research Company says the precision irrigation market is projected to grow from $11.07 billion in 2025 to $20.98 billion by 2030 as farmers face water scarcity and rising food demand. North America led the market in 2025, while AI, IoT controllers and cloud tools are expected to drive the next phase of growth. Why it matters: - Precision irrigation is gaining importance as agriculture faces tighter water supplies and pressure to raise yields. - The market forecast points to strong demand for tools that reduce water waste and improve crop productivity. What happened: - The Business Research Company projected the precision irrigation market will rise from $11.07 billion in 2025 to $12.81 billion in 2026. - The firm said the market will reach $20.98 billion by 2030. - The forecast implies a 15.8% compound annual growth rate in 2026 and a 13.1% CAGR through 2030. - North America was the largest regional market in 2025. - The analysis also covered Asia-Pacific, South East Asia, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, South America, the Middle East and Africa. - More information is available through a free sample report. - The full report is also available online. The details: - Precision irrigation delivers water and nutrients to crops in measured amounts, at the right time and place. - The approach is designed to improve water efficiency, reduce waste, raise crop yields and improve crop quality. - Early market growth was driven by traditional drip irrigation adoption, freshwater scarcity, simple moisture sensors, crop-yield efficiency efforts and agricultural water conservation programs. - Future growth is expected to come from AI-powered irrigation optimization, IoT-enabled controllers, more advanced micro-irrigation systems, climate-resilient water management and cloud-based decision tools. - Emerging trends include sensor-based irrigation scheduling, precision nutrient delivery, automated water distribution control and more efficient micro-irrigation technologies. - The report said rising global demand for agricultural products is a key driver of the market. - Population growth, dietary shifts, biofuel production, urbanization and food-security concerns are also supporting demand. - In September 2025, Statistics Canada and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada estimated Canadian wheat production would rise 1.9% year over year to 36.6 million tonnes. - The same estimate projected yields would rise 1.8% to 51.1 bushels per acre, while harvested area would edge up 0.1% to 26.3 million acres. Between the lines: - The forecast suggests precision irrigation is moving from a niche farm upgrade to a core response to water stress and output pressure. - The strongest growth areas appear tied to software, automation and connected devices, not just basic hardware. - The Canada wheat outlook is a concrete example of how higher crop output expectations can translate into more demand for irrigation efficiency tools. What’s next: - The market is expected to keep expanding as farmers adopt smarter water-management systems. - Broader use of sensor networks, cloud software and automated controls will likely shape the next stage of competition. - The Business Research Company said its 2026 market reports include market attractiveness scoring, TAM analysis, company scoring matrices, Excel forecasting dashboards, hotspot infographics and updated trend graphics. - The company said it covers more than 17,500 reports across 27 industries and 60+ geographies.