CORRECTED, June 2, 2026 — A Swiss company in the growing precision crop spraying space has opened a new factory in Kansas for U.S. production of its flagship product, citing tariffs as one reason for doing so.
Ecorobotix announced in late March that its ARA ultra-high precision sprayer is now being assembled for the U.S. market at Lyons, Kansas, about 120 km northwest of Wichita, the result of a $50 million investment.
A company news release called the move “a significant step in the company’s expansion across North America.”
Why it matters
Tech-driven precision weed spraying is set to grow in North America as algorithms for more crops are developed.
Chrissy Wozniak, U.S. marketing and communications manager for Ecorobotix, says U.S. tariffs were one factor in driving ARA manufacturing to the States, but there have been plans to expand into the country since the company’s inception.
“Even when the company started, they knew that they would have to have production here (in the U.S.) as well because … there’s a limitation on how big the machine can be as we’re shipping.
“The cost of shipping over oceans is astronomical. So it just makes sense to have them manufactured here and then just be able to move them around the U.S. as they’re made.”
According to the Reuters news agency, the U.S. lowered a 39 per cent tariff on import of Swiss goods in November to a maximum 15 per cent on industrial and agricultural products, among others. Swiss companies pledged to invest $200 billion in the U.S. by the end of 2028 as part of the tariff deal.
Chrissy Wozniak, U.S. marketing and communications manager for Ecorobotix. Photo: Supplied
The ARA sprayer is an example of selective sprayers that can isolate and spray weeds either in-crop or on-soil (sometimes referred to as “green-on-green” and “green-on-brown,” respectively), applying crop protection products only where needed.
“The system scans fields and activates targeted spraying within a quarter of a second, helping farmers reduce input costs while maintaining crop performance,” according to the Ecorobotix release.
The machine has limited utility on the Prairies. The current iteration of the machine is only 20 feet wide, a far cry from the high double-digit to three-digit sprayer widths used on popular western Canadian crops such as wheat and canola.
The ARA’s algorithms are focused on high-value specialty crops such as onions, lettuce and cabbage, says Wozniak, which has made it appropriate for use in some areas of Quebec.
However, that situation isn’t static. The company is looking at developing larger booms and is regularly developing new algorithms for different crops, she says.
“We’re adding new algorithms all the time. So our precision gets tighter and our algorithms get better and we add new crops.”
Wozniak touts the crop and weed recognition and spraying speed of the ARA, a process that can take a quarter of a second.
“It’s actually amazing to watch. It’s taking 60 pictures a second and then within a quarter of a second it makes a decision (after) identifying the crop and the weed.”
CORRECTION, June 2, 2026: The version of this article in the print edition of Farmtario (“European spot-sprayer company relocates to U.S.,” June 2, 2026, page 31) suggested Ecorobotix was moving its international production of the ARA ultra-high precision sprayer to the United States. This is incorrect. The new factory is for production of these units in the U.S. for the U.S. market. Production for the rest of the world continues in Switzerland. We apologize for any confusion this has created.
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