Hokuren Expands Its Pesticide Spraying Business by Threefold Using Kintone and Drones

Hokuren Agricultural Cooperative, based in Sapporo, Hokkaido, recently unveiled the successful integration of Kintone into its drone-assisted pesticide spraying operations, showcasing a remarkable transformation that has tripled the scale of its business. This development highlights the effective use of technology in agriculture, resulting in significant efficiency improvements.

Background and Challenges

Hokuren plays a critical role in the economic activities of the JA Group in Hokkaido by managing sales, purchasing, and agricultural support operations. As part of its long-term vision, “Vision 2030,” Hokuren aims to streamline its operations and reduce the burden on producers while addressing labor shortages. The pesticide spraying services, however, were previously managed through outdated methods including phone calls, emails, and Excel spreadsheets. This traditional approach resulted in confusion caused by discrepancies and the mixing of different document formats, leading to significant delays when reconciling billing and spraying activities.

In response to these challenges, Hokuren adopted Kintone, a no-code development platform that allows for easier collaboration between the cooperative and external spraying contractors. With Kintone, they constructed an application that optimizes the order and delivery of pesticide spraying services, effectively resolving the chaos previously experienced in their operations.

Digitization and Efficiency Gains

Utilizing Kintone’s guest space feature, Hokuren now effectively collaborates with approximately 30 external organizations, ensuring secure and efficient information sharing. Furthermore, the integration of an external collaboration plugin has enabled connections with over 100 related parties. In response to updated legal requirements necessitating about 5,000 contracts with raw milk producers, Hokuren developed a system on Kintone that automatically generates contracts based on entered information.

Moreover, an innovative application built on Kintone allows for AI-based verification of uploaded documents against registered data, automating evaluation processes, creation of acceptance report emails, and much more. As a result, Hokuren has achieved a remarkable reduction in labor hours by 234 hours and eradicated errors within their documentation processes. This has allowed operators to verify and amend information 24/7, drastically reducing inquiries and relieving the burden of document management.

Accelerating Digital Transformation

The Digital Promotion Division of Hokuren is spearheading efforts to collect on-site challenges through a series of “Digital Shift Consultation Meetings.” By selectively using Kintone for tasks that require external collaboration, and utilizing Microsoft products and RPA for complex internal needs, they develop a customized approach to their toolkit. Starting from the fiscal year 2025, Hokuren plans to enhance offensive digital transformation initiatives for the entire group and improve communication through a centralized information-sharing portal.

The ultimate goal is to promote broader digital transformation across the organization while strengthening ties among affiliated companies. Continuing to expand the use of Kintone as a powerful tool for information sharing aligns with Hokuren’s corporate slogan, “Making producers happy, and bringing smiles to consumers.”

For a deeper look into how Hokuren has harnessed Kintone in its operations, visit the case study on Kintone’s website: Hokuren Case Study

What is Kintone?

Kintone, a no-code/low-code platform developed by Cybozu, is utilized by over 41,000 companies, including 47% of Prime-listed companies in Japan. The platform provides users without IT knowledge the ability to create applications tailored to their organization's needs and easily adapt to changing business environments. With its core features of “database + workflow + communication,” Kintone supports a wide range of applications including customer management, business trip requests, and operational reports, facilitating continuous operational improvement led by the field.

Visit the Kintone product site for more information: Kintone Product Site