Sourcing for Sensors Used to Detect Soil Health, Contaminated Water Is Up 134% YoY

Christian Cavallo Mar 16, 2023

Welcome to Thomas Insights — every day, we publish the latest news and analysis to keep our readers up to date on what’s happening in industry. Sign up here to get the day’s top stories delivered straight to your inbox.

Welcome to this week’s edition of the Thomas Index Report.

In 2023, sensors are more varied and cheaper than ever before. In this week’s Thomas Index Report, we explore how the creative deployment of sensor technology has created new opportunities for industry and impacted sourcing trends on Thomasnet.com®.

Biosensor technology has spurred innovation in various industries. Unlike physical sensors like thermometers or microphones, biosensors can recognize and convert biological samples into measurable signals, making them useful for medicine, agriculture, environmental monitoring, and food manufacturing industries.

For example, glucose monitoring devices use biosensors to manage blood-sugar-related conditions like diabetes. The sensing technology behind these devices has revolutionized medical care for patients and makes up an $11.71 billion market with a compound annual growth rate of 8% over the next decade.

While biosensors have been traditionally reserved for clinical applications, they are rapidly entering other industries. In fact, biosensors developed by Northwestern University were used this year in Kenya to detect fluoride contaminants in drinking water, giving people the ability to make more informed water quality choices. Associate professors at Iowa State University have also developed graphene-based biosensors for agricultural soil health studies. When implemented, arrays of in-the-field biosensors measure soil health by capturing levels of plant nutrients, pesticides, carbon, and other important information. As global populations rise, these types of soil studies will be vital in ensuring a plentiful food supply chain.

Thomasnet.com’s sourcing data shows a 134% year-over-year increase in biosensor sourcing, suggesting an increased use of these devices in industry and a growing demand for biosensors from our 26,000 registered sensor suppliers.

We expect biosensor demand to drive growth in the agricultural space as farmers use data to optimize yields, track harvests, and digitize their manufacturing processes. But we also anticipate these devices to enter unexpected industries.

I’m Anna Wells, and this is the Thomas Index Report.