“Producing good fruit and producing well” is the objective of the new (Re)Generation Fruit project of Blue Whale and its 6 partners. On September 21st, Blue Whale, which counts 300 producers, presented this new project at its headquarters in Montauban. The goal is to develop agricultural practices for greater “ecological performance and economic sustainability” in the apple sector.
This 5-year program (until February 2028) is part of the France 2030 call for projects for agro-ecological transition, worth 12,125,910 euros [12,853,768 USD] and co-financed by BPI France (8,206,473 euros [8,699,067 USD]). It is led by Blue Whale, in collaboration with 5 partners: MicroPep, Asclepios Tech, Maf Roda, Purpan School of Engineering and INRAE, as well as 6 service providers: Biosphères, Cefel, CTIFL, CIRAD, Catar and EVEA.
“It could become impossible to produce apples. Solutions need to be found,” explains Bruno Bertheloz, director of Blue Whale. The 6-partner consortium aims to “rethink the value chain” of the tricolored apple. Thanks to “a systemic approach combining various innovative technologies, the project aims to develop a virtuous pre- and post-harvest cultivation itinerary in order to obtain a good apple” that is both tasty and good for the environment. According to Christophe Belloc, president of Blue Whale, “we will not be able to produce tomorrow in the same way as we produce today!”
“Apples are much more than a nutritional product”
The foundation of this 5-year program is the Good Apple project, launched in 2019 with the aim of improving the nutritional quality of apples. In 2021, Blue Whale wants to go even further by merging 3 pillars into 1 single project, which will give birth to (Re)Generation Fruit: producing sustainably and producing better in terms of taste and nutrition, because according to Christophe Belloc, "apples are much more than a nutritional product.”
Christophe Belloc, president of Blue Whale
Ensuring the competitiveness and sustainability of farms and winning back young consumers
“Climate change, the reduction in the use of plant protection products, the arrival of new bio-aggressors, the increasingly high societal expectations and the loss of attractiveness of the profession to the younger generation, are all factors currently undermining the agricultural sector,” according to Séverine Maldès, quality manager. Faced with this situation, Blue Whale aims to find “alternative solutions to ensure the competitiveness and sustainability of farms, while guaranteeing the volumes necessary for French food sovereignty.”
This project is also a response to the decline in consumption that has been observed for some time. According to Bruno Bertheloz, we need to “cultivate the good [...] to win back young consumers” by “re-enchanting the apple into a fruit of pleasure again.”
Christelle Bertin, marketing and communication director at Blue Whale
“A combined approach to agronomic and technological levers”
Improving soil life, reinforcing the natural defenses of plants, reducing fruit losses by 50% in the orchard and on the farm, reducing the use of phytosanitary products, improving the nutritional density of fruit... These are the objectives of this “collaborative and ambitious” project that “proposes a more virtuous production itinerary respecting the entire ecosystem and ensuring the sustainability of our farms,” explains Séverine Maldès.
Blue Whale and its partners aim to achieve their goals by “combining these different new technologies,” and adopting a “systemic approach.” In the orchards at first, they will work on soil health with a “plant cover/biostimulant synergy.” A range of innovative peptide solutions from Toulouse-based start-up MicroPep will help against scab and conservation diseases. In fruit-growing stations, the Boxilumix® photobiology solution, developed by Asclepios Tech, also from Toulouse, aims to improve resistance to bio-aggressors and stimulate plant defenses to reduce losses and pesticides. The Purpan School of Engineering will be studying oxidative techniques (ozonated water, ozone gas), with the collaboration of Maf Roda, a specialist in calibration and packaging solutions, for the development of a disinfection laboratory pilot on a fruit-growing station.
For more information:
Blue Whale
1205 Avenue de Falguières
82004 Montauban
Phone: +33 (0)5 63 21 56 56
blue-whale.com/fr
[email protected]
