Hoogstraten's Hardy Kiwi gets new optical sorting device

“It is not obvious for every grower to sort the kiwi berries by size and ripeness,” says Gaston. “The hardy kiwi is mostly produced as a second or third product, because they can only be harvested a few weeks per year. With the new sorting machine, the growers can focus completely on their core business, production. The rest happens at a special department at the auction. The optical sorting machine takes pictures of the berries (600 photographs/second) and the intelligent machine ensures that the kiwis go to the right exit according to the settings for size and ripeness.” The Aweta machine was supplied by Stas Belgium and contains sorting software from the Ellips company of Eindhoven.

The hardy kiwi season has started this week and will exist until October. “Our producers grow early as well as late varieties. This way we can spread the harvest a little bit more,” says Natalie Snijers. The kiwi berry is a product with relatively small volumes. “Nevertheless, the producers and we as a Co-op thought that this product needed such an investment. Besides, we can use this technique and the machine for fruits such as cherries and blueberries, which are products increasing in volume every year.’ 

The hardy kiwi production comes from 20 hectares and 25 producers. “We collect the products from 5 co-ops: CLTV Zundert (NL), BelOrta, Fruitauction Zuid-Limburg (NL), REO auction, and of course, Cooperation Hoogstraten.” All Belgian retailers have the kiwi berry in their stores. The hardy kiwis are not sold early in the morning, but through mediation. “The production of kiwi berries used to be something extra, but more and more producers are investing in this product,” says Natalie. “People now understand the importance of cooling during the harvest. Nowadays, the kiwi berry is cooled directly after the harvest. The producers cooperate very closely with each other; they share a lot of information with each other. The group of kiwi berry producers is very close and transparent. Remarkable cases and information about varieties is shared immediately. The University of Gent supports the producers with information about variety-choice and production techniques on a scientific level.”

The volume of Hoogstratens kiwi berries is increasing every year. “It takes a few years before the hardy kiwi plantation has reached its full production potential. Every season more kiwi berries were planted until last year, so the volumes will increase even more in the coming years. 150 tons of kiwi berries are expected this season, that is about 50 tons more than last year.” Consumers are not very familiar with hardy kiwis. “The new sorting machine can be used to pack only kiwi berries that are equally ripe, which is easier for the consumer. Hardy kiwis are mostly used as a snack, so consumers want to buy and use homogeneous products. We try to eliminate differences in ripeness with this investment,” says Gaston Opdekamp.