The EU FRESH INFO-Forum that will be held again in December, with Horticulture 4.0 as the topic, will offer speakers and workshops on technology's impact on the entire Fresh Produce chain, "Technology is getting faster, better and more intelligent," says Harrij Schmeitz, the Forum's organizer. "The possibilities that technology offers are exponential, and doubles every year (Moore's Law)."
Consumers are also not left behind, they are becoming more and more skilled with technology, "Some even have a measuring device that can read the brix level of a piece of fruit. So as a professional company you have to keep up with the standards and devices of the day." See SCiO example
The Forum wants to contribute to the entire chain, "You need a computer for everything, you even see iPad's in greenhouses, and everything has an IP-address. They all have to communicate with each other." The Forum is international because everything is happening at the international level, "The program lasts two days. There is a tour on the first day, followed by a day of conferences."
Fresh Technology Tour
The tour will take people to see large companies so they can look at the technology used in logistics and crops, "We will go to the HTM2 on the Maasvlakte harbour, Nature's Pride and Priva." The tour will end with a visit to Rijk Zwaan, "We really want to give the visitors something to see, rather than just giving them talks." Click here for more information on the Fresh Technology Tour
The tour will take people to see large companies so they can look at the technology used in logistics and crops, "We will go to the HTM2 on the Maasvlakte harbour, Nature's Pride and Priva." The tour will end with a visit to Rijk Zwaan, "We really want to give the visitors something to see, rather than just giving them talks." Click here for more information on the Fresh Technology Tour
Day 1: Strategy
This day consists of speakers from throughout the entire chain, "We are happy to welcome Meiny Prins, CEO of Priva and Ben Horsburgh, Quality Director at Univeg, among many others." Along with these speakers there are also other international speakers who have given a new dimension to technology.
"One of the speakers is Salah Sukkarieh, University of Sydney & Australian Center for Field Robotics Australia. She looks at robotics from a different angle. In the Netherlands we want everyone to work, but in Australia they have a different view. For example, a robot can easily find it's way around a field in order to harvest."
Day 1 will finish with Loren Zhao from Fruitday, "Together with NorthWest Cherry he launched a major campaign to sell cherries online in China using a web-shop." Click here for more information about the first day
Day 2 Round-tables: best practices and depth
Day 1 will finish with Loren Zhao from Fruitday, "Together with NorthWest Cherry he launched a major campaign to sell cherries online in China using a web-shop." Click here for more information about the first day
Day 2 Round-tables: best practices and depth
The last day is a network of workshops. There will be 40 workshops, some of which will focus on every facet of technology and the market, "There is one workshop that will go over logistics, food safety, inventory and finances. Other subjects that will be touched upon include; online aspects, cultivation, labelling and data sharing."
In addition to the aforementioned workshops, there will also be workshops on education, "For some these topics are well known, but for others they are new. That is why we wanted to add educational workshops as well." Click here for more information about day two
Harrij hopes there will be 100 more people this year, last year they welcomed 200 people, "Sometimes people say, 'Are you not offering too much, Harrij?' But our strategy is to ensure that there is something for everyone. With a wide range of speakers and workshops everyone can choose what is interesting to them. It is also essential to bring everyone in the industry together, from greenhouse to the store, and from Fresh Produce to technology. Connection leads to growth!"
Harrij hopes there will be 100 more people this year, last year they welcomed 200 people, "Sometimes people say, 'Are you not offering too much, Harrij?' But our strategy is to ensure that there is something for everyone. With a wide range of speakers and workshops everyone can choose what is interesting to them. It is also essential to bring everyone in the industry together, from greenhouse to the store, and from Fresh Produce to technology. Connection leads to growth!"