New partnerships strengthen AgroFresh Solutions’ postharvest platform

AgroFresh Solutions, which specializes in postharvest produce freshness, is expanding its FreshCloud digital quality and supply chain platform through partnerships with agtech companies Aerobotics and Neolithics.

By aggregating data from multiple sources, FreshCloud offers options at each step in the fresh produce supply chain for digitally integrated, quality measurements, according to a news release. Building on its existing partnerships with sensor innovators Rubens Technologies, Strella, and Escavox, AgroFresh continues to expand its connected sensor (aka IoT, or Internet of Things) platform for post-harvest management.

“AgroFresh is committed to building the most holistic and connected digital platform in fresh produce,” Bradford Warner, AgroFresh’s head of digital solutions, said in the release. “By integrating partners like Aerobotics and Neolithics, FreshCloud now connects orchard-to-packhouse intelligence like never before.”

TrueFruit by Aerobotics

The partnership with orchard and packhouse analytics company Aerobotics integrates multiple TrueFruit modules into FreshCloud, delivering AI-powered orchard and packhouse intelligence, according to the release.

Using computer vision and AI analysis of smartphone imagery, Aerobotics enables growers to:

• Measure fruit size, color, and quality accurately and objectively
• Harvest plan with accurate size forecasting, blemish detection and color grading models
• Monitor quality with standardized measurements, from the orchard to the packhouse
• View yield data in one place for informed decisions that can help boost packouts by an average of 1-5%, providing more than 10 times return on investment for commercial customers

Quality control with Neolithics

The integration of AI-powered quality inspection company Neolithics’ capabilities into FreshCloud provides packers with cutting-edge technology to improve inspection and quality control, according to the release.

Neolithics’ imaging:

• Provides high-throughput inspection, from one kilogram per minute for berries to over six tons per hour for avocados, with internal and external quality scans
• Measures key parameters such as brix, acidity, and dry matter, while detecting internal and surface defects
• Completes the QC process without destroying any fruit with more than 90% accuracy