Two companies from the UK – one in the overall Innovation category and the other in Machinery and Technology – have been nominated for this year’s Fruit Logistica Innovation Awards.
Bedfordshire-based Calypso Growers could have a winner with their Calypso Sweet Red Onions, while Wyma Solutions are hoping to take home top prize for their Roto-Cut Vegetable Trimmer at this year’s show in Berlin.
There are five competitors overall in each category representing the best new ideas in fresh produce from across the globe, and they will be on display at Fruit Logistica from February 7th to the 9th. Show organizers say the nominees represent “outstanding innovations in the entire fruit and vegetable supply chain from production to the point of sale. Innovations can be products, services or technical innovations.”
The Bedfordshire co-op has been around for more than 60 years, producing Brassica. Aside from its signature Brussels sprouts, it has led the way in onions in the UK. Its controlled agriculture storage innovations have led a huge boost to the season, and the Growers now boast a year-round operation.
In addition to the Calypso Red Onions, the Innovation category includes some unique entries:
- The Three Halves Avocado Fresh with 30 days shelf life, which features stunning “naked,” seal-packed avocados from Infuseo in France;
- Zucchiolo, a green pumpkin-shaped vegetable that tastes similar to a cucumber from Unica Fresh SL in Spain;
- Frutastic squash varieties from Gautier Semences in France, which have shown tremendous abilities to generate big yields through indoor farming;
- Exceed Watermelons, which are succulent mini watermelons from Staay Food Group B.V. in the Netherlands designed to promote sustainability.
Meanwhile, Wyma Solutions will make their case in the Machinery and Technology category with the Roto-cut Vegetable Trimmer, which can remove foliage, crowns, and tails prior to packing. It uses a “combination of optical technology, a smart recognition system and artificial intelligence to individually determine the size and shape of each vegetable and the appropriate point at which it should be cut.”
Others from the category include:
- Aspara to go, the world’s smallest self-service asparagus peeler, from Hepro GmbH in Germany;
- Crop Load Vision, a mobile app that counts fruit before harvesting from Croptracker, Inc., in Canada;
- Mirical, a natural method to prevent whitefly damage in greenhouse veg, from Koppert in the Netherlands;
- Apogee, a robotic exoskeleton from German Bionic in Germany that can be worn by workers lifting heavy loads.
Winners will be announced at 2:30pm on Friday, 9 February within the FLIA Technology exhibition area between Halls 1.1 and 2.1. Each visitor can win one of three Apple AirPods Pro (2nd generation) just by voting.
