"Dutch bell pepper season had a memorable start, difficult middle, and even worse end"

The Dutch bell pepper season is almost over, and "we can gradually begin reflecting on its highs and lows," says Marco Bergman, a salesman at Harvest House. "Just like the previous season, this, too, is one to remember. It began very well, became very difficult, and ended even worse. It was a season in…

Steady supplies of asparagus continue from Peru

Supplies of asparagus from Peru are in good shape and will continue to be that way through December. “Peru is year-round with asparagus but typically Peruvian asparagus in the U.S. is from April-May through to December. January-March they back out because of the Mexican deal,” says Gary Meadows of Five…

Using AI technology to reduce crown rot in bananas

At last week's Cool Logistics' conference food waste was high on the agenda and it was discussed on how reduce this waste in supply chain. Theofrastos Mantadelis, Founder, dimetra.eu has worked together with AgroFair a pioneer in Fairtrade and conventional and organic bananas, Theo built an AI…

Ecuador: Banana producers ask for price of a box to rise to $7.50

On the morning of this Friday the 22nd, banana producers carried out a peaceful sit-in at Guayaquil, to demand that the price of the box of bananas that will govern by 2022…

Biotechnology consulting bears fruit for African banana growers

John L. Griffis Jr., Ph.D., made his first consulting trip to Malawi in southeastern Africa in August 2019. He has since continued to volunteer his knowledge remotely during…

'Potato harvest is in the final stages across Canada'

The potato harvest is in the final stages across the country. Most provinces (with the exception of British Columbia) have enjoyed excellent harvest conditions without cool…

"First Salicornia grower in the world with this harvesting system"

Hubrecht Janse began cultivating Salicornia for the fresh market in the Netherlands in 2006. Soon after, he started wanting to harvest this mechanically. "We certainly had to dispel some prejudices first. Not everyone was confident about the quality of machine-harvested Salicornia. But, by now, we've…

Corpohass installed the first National Table of Colombian Hass Avocado Exporters

As of August, Colombia has exported 65,783 tons of Hass Avocado, i.e. 47% more than in the same period of 2020. These exports amount to 150,706,046 dollars, proving the great reception that the Colombian Hass avocado has in the 30 international destinations it currently reaches. The Corporation of…

Harvest Moon trials avocados in Tasmania

Harvest Moon, a 40-year producer in Tasmania’s far north, has set about trialing avocados. Mark Kable, agricultural director at Harvest Moon, claims avocado growing in such an…

Leader of Washington Apple Education Foundation steps down after two decades

After leading the Washington Apple Education Foundation (WAEF) as its executive director for 20 years, Jennifer Witherbee will step down at the end of March 2022. Witherbee…

Tomra: Continued growth and solid order backlog

Tomra ended the third quarter of 2021 with sustained quarter over quarter growth. The order intake has been well above 2020 levels, leading to an order backlog close to…

Vertical farming’s role in non-fresh produce sector

“What we grow is often dictated by the problems in the existing supply chain. We’ve built our platform, the mechanical environment pulled together by the data science, to grow different plants,” says David Rosenberg, CEO and co-founder of AeroFarms. In September 2021, AeroFarms announced its partnership…

Port Hueneme can be ‘relief valve’ for congestion at Ports of LA and Long Beach

With the national supply chain in crisis, and dozens of ships anchored offshore in the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach waiting to offload cargo, some ships are choosing to…

Freight cost increase raises major concerns in South Africa

Increases in freight costs are raising eyebrows in South Africa. In particular, these costs are going to pose a significant problem for the entire fruit industry,  especially grapes,…

Soft Robotics might tackle farm labor issues

A generation of new robots, developed in Europe, that use photonics to detect a fruit is entering the field. This type of robot is made of malleable materials such as silicone…

"We want to make sure a part of the food security solution includes a healthy percentage of fresh fruits and vegetables"

In the ten years since becoming a permanent fixture in the South Australian Produce Market, one of the country's largest hunger-relief charities has been able to significantly increase its distribution of fresh produce within South Australia. Foodbank's role is to work with the food industry to capture…

"I couldn't prove small family farms are the future"

"I tried to prove that small family farms are the future. I couldn’t do it." That is what freelance journalist and farmers daughter Sarah Mock concludes from research for her…

UK growers to downsize food production after labor shortage causes ‘unprecedented’ waste

British farmers are being forced to slash production next year as a massive labor shortfall has caused an “unprecedented” amount of food to be thrown out in 2021. The food…

Prior permit required to import fruits and vegetables from December 1

The Ministry of Municipality has announced that a permit will be required to import vegetables and fruits from December 1, 2021. At an introductory meeting, attended by Dr…

Customs authorities becoming increasingly aware of illegally grown proprietary fruit

This past June, the local Italian port authorities and customs officials seized a container of suspicious premium proprietary table grapes. The shipment seized had left Egypt and was destined for the Netherlands, to then be distributed in the retail markets around Northern Europe. While being held in its…

Indonesia and Chile at forefront of global digital currency interest

Indonesia has emerged as the country with the highest interest in digital currencies, just ahead of Chile and Argentina, which are in second and third place. The country saw a…

"We are waiting until the price-quality ratio of Brazilian muskmelons improves"

Brazil first obtained permission to export muskmelons to the Chinese market in 2020. A few companies showed a willingness to give the Brazilian fruits a chance when they imported the first Brazilian muskmelons. However, they were quite expensive, not in the least because of the high cost of air freight,…

Ceres is the cherry on the top in terms of hectares planted

The Western Cape town of Ceres has long been an apple and pear growing capital but, in the last decade, it has become the largest centre of cherry production with more than 274 hectares (ha) planted according to Hortgro’s 2020 deciduous industry figures. Many folk who grew up in the Cape may remember…

Ample table grapes incoming for the rest of 2021

Grapes will be in healthy supply for the coming months. California production of grapes continues. “There’s still a fair amount of fruit hanging and the majority is covered in plastic. October-November is a fairly rainy period for the San Joaquin Valley,” says Ira Greenstein of Direct Source Marketing in…

China: Top-quality domestic fruit is on the rise during Covid-19 period

The Covid-19 pandemic has been a challenge for the global fruit industry for almost 2 years now. There have been several changes and transformations in the industry in response to these challenges. Market demand for imported fruit grows fast in China’s southwestImported fruit is no longer an expensive, exclusive…

NZ apple industry welcomes UK Free Trade Agreement

New Zealand Apples & Pears Inc (NZAPI), the industry association representing the country’s apple, pear and nashi growers, has welcomed the announcement from the Prime…

USDA

Blueberry cultivation worldwide – past, present and future

Trade and production of blueberries is expanding globally as product development boosts their profile in form and function. Hailed for their flavor, versatility, and health benefits, blueberry consumption has expanded beyond fresh, ranging from pureed to powdered forms. Blueberries are also being used as…

New strawberry variety ready for Huelva

Four million plants of CIVL519 * / Shayda® planted. The partnership with VOG is also growing for the new apple variety CIVM49 * / Red Pop®. “We plan to expand the project in the main producing countries of the Old Continent”, says Marco Bertolazzi CIV-Consorzio Italiano Vivaisti, the Italian Nursery…

Les Herbes Gourmandes: $11.7M in financing from BDC and FCC to double production area

Fresh herb producers Les Herbes Gourmandes (Serres Coulombe) of Saint-Norbert, Quebec received $11.7 million in non-dilutive financing from BDC and Farm Credit Canada (FCC).…

New educational sessions added for Organic Grower Summit

Two new educational sessions will explore how technology is enhancing organic crop production and offer a look at the growth of organic fresh produce sales at grocery stores over the past two years as part of the 2021 Organic Grower Summit (OGS) presented by Western Growers and OPN educational program,…

Aldi to sell 'pink lemon' in Spain

Aldi, the German supermarket chain, will start selling pink lemon in Spain starting October 23. The pink lemon, also known as Eureka, is yellow and green on the outside and…

US organic fresh produce sales continue outpacing conventional growth

Total organic fresh produce sales for the third quarter of 2021 saw a continuation of year-over-year growth, increasing by three percent from the same period last year and nearing $2.3 billion for the quarter, according to the Q3 2021 Organic Produce Performance Report released exclusively by Organic…

Scientists recommend doubling dose of vitamin C

According to a recent study, the recommended dose of vitamin C people have been advised to take should be doubled. At present, the NHS and World Health Organization both…

Agritech company's offering heavily oversubscribed

Hectre, the New Zealand based orchard management and fruit sizing software company, has just completed a funding round which will see both its team and its product innovation capability expand significantly.The NZD$3.5m pre-series A funding round was heavily oversubscribed, testament to the value…

Naïo Technologies unveils plans for international expansion in agricultural robotics market

Naïo Technologies, a company in agricultural robotics for nearly 10 years, is accelerating its international development strategy, moving beyond the context of technological innovation in order to consolidate its worldwide growth and launch a new RAAS business model. Oz, the versatile farming assistant…

A-INSIGHTS

Global trade volumes of frozen potato products stabilizing

Analysts at Market and consumer data analytics company A-INSIGHTS report that global frozen potato trade volumes have stabilized in July, with the year-to-date volume remaining 0.5% above the pre-COVID levels of 2019. Compared to July 2019, the monthly trade volume was down 0.3%, driven mainly by a 7.6%…

"This type of freezing is much quicker and results in higher product quality"

OctoFrost has come a long way in the frozen food processing industry by listening to its customers’ needs and working together with experts in the food industry. OctoFrost manufactures and offers equipment for the thermal treatment of food products such as blanching, cooking, chilling and IQF freezing.  According…

Ron Simon & Associates files nation's first onion salmonella lawsuit

Today, the national food safety law firm of Ron Simon & Associates, along with Peterson Lawyers in Boise, Idaho, filed the first lawsuit in the nation as the U.S. Centers for…

Pistachio brand celebrates National Nut Day

To celebrate National Nut Day, Wonderful® Pistachios reports pistachios are the biggest and fastest-growing snack nut category in terms of annual retail revenue followed by cashews, mixed nuts, peanuts and almonds, according to recent Information Resources, Inc. (IRI) 52-week data. The data indicates…

The cold sealing technology that reduces plastic in packaging by 30%

As part of Fruit Attractión 2021, the reference fair in the fruit and vegetable sector, Juan José Cruz, manager of Earis, presented Cold Sealing, technology for fruit trays and other fresh products. Cold sealing has great advantages over traditional hot sealing, which is the most common technology today.…

Chilean fresh fruit supplier commits to 100% clean energy supplies

Copefrut, a Chilean company with over 65 years in the production and export of traditional and organic fresh fruit, signed a contract to commit to 100 percent clean energy…