Henry Monitor, Yatsugatake Agricultural College, and Suwa Shinkin Bank Sign Collaboration Agreement for Next-Generation Agricultural Model Demonstration

Henry Monitor Inc. (Headquarters: Suwa City, Nagano Prefecture; CEO: Takashi Komatsu; hereinafter 'Henry Monitor'), Yatsugatake Agricultural College (Location: Hara Village, Suwa District, Nagano Prefecture; Chairman: Soichiro Minami), and Suwa Shinkin Bank (Head Office: Okaya City, Nagano Prefecture; Chairman: Teruaki Tanaka) signed a collaboration agreement on June 2, 2026, regarding the demonstration of a next-generation agricultural model. Based on this agreement, the 'Soil Analysis LABO' was established on the campus of Yatsugatake Agricultural College on June 2, 2026, and joint operation by the three parties will commence.

Background and Purpose: Shift to Data-Driven Agriculture and the Importance of Soil Analysis

Japanese agriculture faces serious challenges such as the aging of producers, labor shortages, soaring material prices, and climate change. Under these circumstances, a shift from traditional agriculture reliant on experience and intuition to efficient, data-driven agriculture is an urgent task. This agreement aims to address these challenges by combining Henry Monitor's advanced sensing technology, Yatsugatake Agricultural College's vast practical fields, and Suwa Shinkin Bank's community-based support system.

Accurate understanding of soil conditions, the foundation of data-driven agriculture, is essential. However, conventional soil analysis often takes time to produce results, and the culture of regularly conducting analysis or incorporating real-time sensing into cultivation management is not yet widespread. As a result, many agricultural management entities do not continuously monitor soil changes during the cultivation period and utilize them for management decisions.

The establishment of the 'Soil Analysis LABO' under this agreement is a crucial step to break this status quo. By building a demonstration model at Yatsugatake Agricultural College and accelerating the development of Henry Monitor's actual equipment, we will evolve soil analysis into something more 'familiar and friendly' and present a next-generation agricultural approach that can be directly applied to daily management decisions.

Role of the 'Soil Analysis LABO' Enabling On-Site Immediate Analysis

To solve this issue, the newly established 'Soil Analysis LABO' will build a system that allows for inexpensive and speedy understanding of soil conditions. This will make it possible to immediately reflect analysis results in the cultivation management of that season. In the future, the three parties aim to expand and disseminate this demonstration model to many local farmers.

Main Contents of the Collaboration Agreement

The three parties will collaborate and cooperate on the following matters with the aim of contributing to the sustainable development of the local community:
1. Joint development of soil analysis products provided by Henry Monitor
2. Joint operation of the 'Soil Analysis LABO' and provision of know-how
3. Accumulation of knowledge on agricultural sensing and soil analysis and its utilization for regional development
4. Joint development of educational content for next-generation agricultural workers
5. Other matters related to the revitalization of local agriculture agreed upon by the three parties

Specific Initiatives

As the first initiative under this collaboration, demonstrations utilizing the vast fields on the college campus will begin this season. In the large-scale cultivation of the college's main products, broccoli and corn, and the ongoing 10-hectare flower field project, analysis results from the 'Soil Analysis LABO' will be applied to actual fertilization plans and cultivation management. Trainees at Yatsugatake Agricultural College will incorporate the latest analysis techniques into their practical training, fostering agricultural personnel capable of making scientifically based decisions. The scope of target items is expected to expand in the future.

Comments from Representatives

Takashi Komatsu, CEO, Henry Monitor Inc.
'I feel greatly encouraged to be able to collaborate with Yatsugatake Agricultural College and Suwa Shinkin Bank. I believe that a sustainable model rooted in the region can only take shape by combining not only Henry Monitor's sensing technology but also the practical field and human resource development capabilities of Yatsugatake Agricultural College, and the network and support power cultivated by Suwa Shinkin Bank in the community. Through this collaboration, we will disseminate a new form of co-creation supporting the future of regional agriculture, starting from soil analysis, from the Suwa and Yatsugatake area.'

Yusuke Maruyama, President and Managing Director, Yatsugatake Agricultural College
'Our college promotes education emphasizing 'Technology,' 'Science,' and 'Marketing.' Establishing a soil analysis lab on campus and providing trainees with the experience of immediately reflecting data they analyzed themselves into cultivation is the most practical learning for them. We will disseminate a sustainable agricultural model that can produce results even for beginners from this region.'

Dr. Dorodango, Director of the Soil Analysis LABO, Yatsugatake Agricultural College
'I have been appointed as the Director of the Soil Analysis LABO at Yatsugatake Agricultural College. As a sandbox researcher, I have been studying the relationship between children and soil by touching sandboxes and soil around the world. Sand and soil are not just ground. They hold water, allow air to pass through, microorganisms live in them, and they grow plants. There are countless invisible activities there. At the Soil Analysis LABO, I aim to conduct research and dissemination that connects to the future of agriculture and education, while valuing not only numerical data but also on-site sensations and connections with the environment. I will explore a form of soil analysis unique to Yatsugatake Agricultural College that combines practice and research, and work together with everyone involved in agriculture to take on new agricultural challenges.'

Teruaki Tanaka, Chairman, Suwa Shinkin Bank
'I believe one of the roles required of regional financial institutions is to understand the 'invisible value' of companies and regions, believe in their potential, and nurture them together. In agriculture as well, non-financial accumulations such as soil building, human resource development, and community connections ultimately lead to profitability and sustainability. This collaboration aims to visualize the 'invisible asset' of soil by combining Henry Monitor's sensing technology with Yatsugatake Agricultural College's practical education and research environment, aiming to build a new agricultural management model based on data. As a bank, we will contribute to the development of regional agriculture and the cultivation of next-generation human resources through this collaboration, supporting challenges that underpin the future of the region.'

[About Henry Monitor Inc.]
Henry Monitor Inc. is a technology company headquartered in Suwa City, Nagano Prefecture, with a lab, that works on visualizing soil conditions and material properties that were previously difficult to see, using its unique magnetic field sensor and AI. Based on research and development cultivated at Komatsu Seiki Kosakusho since 2006, it was established as a new company in June 2020. In the agricultural field, it is advancing the social implementation of analysis technology that can estimate soil components in a short time without using chemicals, supporting rapid decision-making in the field. It provides new criteria for judgment in the field of local industries through the power of sensing and AI.

[About Yatsugatake Agricultural College]
Founded in 1938. Located at the foot of Mt. Yatsugatake at an altitude of 1,300m, with a vast farm campus covering a total area of 267 hectares (more than 60 times the site area of the Tokyo Dome), trainees learn practical agriculture (field crops, horticulture, dairy farming, poultry farming, etc., covering both crop and livestock aspects).