Amid a severe shortage of manpower, a team comprised of researchers from private companies and a university in Aichi Prefecture is working on developing a self-driving robot that uses cutting-edge technology to support flower-growing farmers. In fiscal 2019 the group hopes to start marketing automated, handcart-type robots that follow pickers of roses...

Global orange production for 2017/18 is forecast to tumble 6.0 million metric tons (tons) from the previous...

Tart cherries for sale at the Ossining Farmer’s Market July 7, 2018. The farmer’s market is open...

In the first half of 2018, Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA) improved on the already strong prior-year result. Both Group revenue and the Group operating result increased slightly in the first six months against the same period of the previous year, which was already very strong. This development was driven by...

The 2018 European apple and pear crop forecast estimates that most European countries are moving back to a full crop, after experiencing a severe setback last year due to April and early May frosts. On 9 August 2018, close to 300 representatives of the international apple and pear sector met at the...

In the first half of 2018, Russia increased the import of citrus fruits by 12.2%, according to customs statistics (FCS) for January-June 2018. In general, the share of imports of food products and raw materials for their production during the reporting period slightly decreased from 13.6% last year to 13.0%. Of the...

As reported by various media, there have been considerable frosts in June and July of this season. The low temperatures affected different producing areas, and reached -3°C to -4°C in some affected orchards. Fortunately, the extension of the phenomenon has been limited, and has only affected some sectors in the valleys and...

In the very near future, robots are going to be picking the vegetables that appear on grocery...

3 August, 2018 – A group of 30 farm workers at the South African table grape farm...

Although only in early stages, the tit-for-tat exchange of retaliatory tariffs is setting up a food fight of epic proportions that will impact businesses large and small around the globe. Global Food Fight At 12:01 AM EDT on the sixth of July, the Trump administration triggered the largest trade war in modern...

The Aegean region, one of Turkey’s most important centers in terms of food exports, has hosted Chinese food importers. A delegation consisting of procurement authorities in the Guangdong Imported Food Association established in the People’s Republic of China and five importing companies, members in this association, held bilateral business talks with 30...

Cherry producers in New York state and the Great Lakes region don’t have it easy. They face...

Round. Red. Good in salads and great on a BLT. Tomatoes are a typical find in the kitchens of families in the United States, so popular we are the world’s third largest producer of them. Though some people like to engage in the “tuh-MAY-toh” versus “tuh-MAH-toh” debate, the more popular question when...

FAVERSHAM (Britain) • After weeks of uninterrupted sunshine, the strawberry season is in full swing in the so-called Garden of England. But with a shortage of seasonal labourers to pick the fruits, a trend exacerbated by Brexit, there are growing fears many may be left to rot on their stems. “We will...

Brockton, Mass. – Concord Foods is proud to announce its partnership with California Avocado Commission (CAC) to bring free guacamole samples into retailers this summer. To maximize sales during the Fourth of July weekend, Concord Foods and CAC partner to bring flavorful, creamy guacamole prepared and the new Concord Fresh Success guacamole mixes, which include no artificial flavors,...

Pleasant Prairie, Wis. (June 25, 2018) – Dedicated to providing better-for-you food choices, Good Foods is excited...

SANTIAGO, CHILE, 14 February, 2018 — With the aim of promoting consumption of Chilean citrus, including its...

12 June 2018, Rome – After years of steady decline, child labour in agriculture has started to rise again in recent years driven in part by an increase in conflicts and climate-induced disasters. This worrisome trend, not only threatens the wellbeing of millions of children, but also undermines efforts to end global...

If no action is taken to reduce the negative impacts on agricultural yields, the researchers estimate that the environmental changes predicted to occur by mid- to end-century in water availability and ozone concentrations would reduce average yields of vegetables and legumes by 35% and 9% respectively. In hot settings such as Southern...

FEDERAL biosecurity staff are yet to pinpoint the source of a spreading outbreak of citrus canker first...

Carl Gortzig ’52, professor emeritus and chair of the former Department of Floriculture and Ornamental Horticulture, died June 2 at the Oak Hill Manor Nursing Home in Ithaca. He was 87. Gortzig was also the Elizabeth Newman Wilds Director Emeritus of Cornell Botanic Gardens, formerly Cornell Plantations. His research covered floriculture economics...

Renzo Gomez, member of the Passion Fruit Work Table of the Association of Exporters (ADEX), stated that Peru had 6,500 hectares of passion fruit, which yield an average of 18 to 20 tons per hectare. The area with the highest production is Chimbote with 2,000 ha. It is followed by Piura, Olmos,...

The Mexican Army seized a multi-million dollar shipment of different drugs that was hidden in boxes of fruit and was destined for the United States. The drugs included large quantities of the most commonly used illicit substances among American addicts, such as fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana. In the black market,...

SANTIAGO, CHILE, 14 February, 2018 — With the aim of promoting consumption of Chilean citrus, including its health benefits, the Chilean Citrus Committee of Chile’s Fruit Exporters Association (ASOEX), together with ProChile, has created a promotional campaign for this season for the UK and Japan; two important export markets for these colourful,...

The capacity of farm robotics to deliver quick-fix solutions to agriculture’s labour concerns is vastly over-estimated according to researchers in the Netherlands. Dutch robotics scientist, Rick van de Zedde, told delegates at F&A Next: “Industry expectations for farm robotics are definitely too high at present. “There is a tendency for users to...

To make sustainable diet choices easier for consumers, WRI introduces a new protein scorecard ranking foods from...

Beef is extremely inefficient to produce, as cattle consume a huge amount of calories and protein in...

The restriction on Turkish tomato companies exporting products to Russia has been lifted as of May 1st. Even though press reports claimed all the restrictions have been lifted, that is not accurate as the annual aggregate quota is still in place at 50,000 tons. Before the political crisis between the two countries,...

European consumers expect a clean supply chain and biodiversity to be conserved. Therefore, reducing the inputs of pesticides and chemical fertilisers to a minimum and/or replacing them by agro-ecological or robot solutions is required. Furthermore, the average age of European farmers is among the highest of all sectors, thus farming needs to...

Robotics are being talked up as a solution to labour shortages in horticulture industries around the world. The new technology could replace crop harvesting jobs that farmers are increasingly struggling to fill. Staffing had rapidly become a global challenge for the horticulture industry, Robotics Plus founder Steve Saunders said at a conference...

The government has decided to construct small irrigation systems with solar-powered pumps for constant supply of water  to farming fields to make the production of fresh tomato an all-year round activity. Mr. George Oduro, a Deputy Minister of Food and Agriculture, said when he addressed a stakeholders meeting of the tomato farming...

Horticulture production is estimated at 307.2 million tonnes (mt) in the current year (July-June), up 2.2 per cent over last year , according to second advance estimates of released by the Union Agriculture Ministry on Tuesday. Last year’s production was 300.6 mt. The production of fruits is estimated to be about 94.4...

A group of Chilean scientists is applying artificial intelligence to help a sector not usually associated with this kind of high technology–fruit farmers. The team has designed a special software called Agronomic Simulation and Agroclimatic Information, known by its Spanish acronym SAIA, which places real-time data about the soil, plants and weather...

The World Bank announced today a USD 140 million project to support the Tunisian government’s focus on irrigated agriculture as a means of managing scarce water resources while creating economic opportunities, especially in underdeveloped rural regions. The new project will finance the repair of irrigation systems to make them more efficient and...

STOCKHOLM, SWEDEN, 21 May, 2018 — MOST, the Sweden-based creator of one of the world’s most innovative real-time data and temperature tracker for perishables, has announced new distribution agreements in Colombia, Peru and Ecuador, continuing the company’s dynamic expansion across Latin America.  MOST’s new partnership will cover the three territories and is...

Exploring the fresh fruit section at a Hema Fresh supermarket. The group of more than 50 international entered the Super Species supermarket outlet on March 20 in Shenzhen and made a beeline for the fruit—peering, sniffing, poking and exclaiming in a manner that seemed extreme even among China’s most fruit-fanatic consumers. The...

Pullach, Germany — April 17, 2018: A new study, Carbon Footprint of Food Packaging, comparing the carbon footprints of Reusable Plastic Containers (RPCs) and single-use cardboard boxes, has shown that RPCs emit 60% less CO2 when used for packaging, shipping and storing fresh produce. Published in February 2018, the study was conducted...

Brandon McFadden Humanity needs an innovative food system to not only survive, but to thrive. In 2050, nearly 10 billion people will populate the Earth. Future generations will be dealing with not only greater numbers of neighbors and denser population centers, but also a food system likely to face the negative impacts...

If the thought of drying your body with a towel steeped in the fragrance of “mikan” mandarin oranges has ever appealed, you’re in luck. Ehime Prefecture, the nation’s primary producer of mikan, is also renowned for its Imabari brand of cotton towels. Marrying these two aspects of the local culture was a...

A $70 million privately funded, groundbreaking agriculture venture in Huron remain confident they can produce and achieve...

rrigated pepper crop had greater and more uniform growth rates than without irrigation. • Daily irrigation provided higher growth rates when the lowest depth of water was applied. • Irrigation every two days resulted in higher growing rates when the largest water depth was applied. • The experimental plot size was always...

Apple harvest depends on a large seasonal workforce, and decreasing availability of agricultural employees, increasing labor costs, and occupational injuries are creating challenges for apple harvest activities. Researchers at The Pennsylvania State University developed a low-cost apple harvest-assist unit to improve apple harvest efficiency. The unit performed reliably during field tests. Apple...

Peach and apple are two important products in the Mediterranean fruit sector. The aim of this work is to analyse environmentally the entire life cycle stages of Mediterranean fruit production, from cradle to grave, considering agricultural, retail, consumption and disposal stages, using a multiyear approach with data from ten years of real...

The two largest deciduous fruit industry associations, the South African Apple and Pear Producers’ Association (SAAPPA) and the South African Stone Fruit Producers’ Association (SASPA) will in future be known as Hortgro Pome and Hortgro Stone. Hortgro, the deciduous fruit umbrella-group, said in a statement that the name changes will streamline future...

Raspberry fruit is very sensitive and susceptible to rapid decay. The decline in quality starts practically from the moment when the fruit is picked. Fruits initially lose strength, then release the juice, intensify the development of mold and at last the rotting process starts. The goal of all technological processes after harvest...

To understand the effect of high temperature stress on Pyrus trees, the changes in antioxidant substance, antioxidant enzymet and osmotic substance in leaves of 2-year-old ‘Huangguan'(P. pyrifolia ‘Cuiguan’) and ‘Cuiyu'(P. bretschneideri × P. pyrifolia) seedlings were measured, and the expressions of related genes at different stages were analyzed by q RT-PCR. The...

After exploring how to choose a new variety last issue with Steve Spark, AgFirst’s John Wilton shows us the ins and outs of managed club varieties.  High colour sports are now raising colour standards: Lady in Red is on the left, standard Cripps Pink on the right. Since the Australian apple industry...

Climate change impact assessments are predominantly undertaken for the purpose of informing future adaptation decisions. Often, the complexity of the methodology hinders the actionable outcomes. The approach used here illustrates the importance of considering uncertainty in future climate projections, at the same time providing robust and simple to interpret information for decision-makers....

A Washington State study into designing high density orchard trellises has some useful messages and handy online tool for Australian growers. A new online tool which can reduce the risk of trellis failure under high load by customising orchard systems to meet the demands of local conditions is the key output of...

Breeding apples is a long-term endeavour and it is imperative that new cultivars are selected to have outstanding consumer appeal. This study has taken the approach of merging sensory science with genome wide association analyses in order to map the human perception of apple flavour and texture onto the apple genome. The...

AREFLH’s general assembly (Assembly of European Horticultural Regions) was held yesterday 28th of March in Brussels. In the presence of distinguished guests such as MEP Herbert Dorfmann and João Onofre from the European Commission, the association put forward its position on the future of the fruit and vegetable sector in the post-2020...

First kiwifruit being picked  Increased harvest volumes expected this year   The first kiwifruit is being picked in New Zealand with orchards cleared to be harvested from the top of the North Island to the top of the South Island. Over 2,500 growers will be harvesting some 13,500 hectares of kiwifruit.  ...

27 March, 2018 – The South African Table Grape Industry (SATI) is sad to announce the passing away of its Chairman Michael Laubscher following a serious motorbike accident. After bravely fighting for his life he passed away in a Paarl hospital last night (26 March) due to complications following the accident that...

A new agreement between Culdevco and the Agricultural Research Council (ARC) for a further 10 year period...

Walmart has filed a patent for autonomous robotic bees, technically called pollination drones, that could potentially pollinate crops just like real bees. The drones would carry pollen from one plant to another, using sensors and cameras to detect the locations of the crops. First spotted by CB Insights, the robot bee patent appears along five other...

The AFGC is an industry association which represents the manufacturers and suppliers behind Australia’s food, beverage, and...

The Fruit World Map has been a cornerstone of AgroPress since the 1970s. The updated version of...

Exhibiting or visiting a trade show can be very expensive. “Some are worth it, some are just...

Enhanced rock weathering involves adding minute rock grains to cropland soils which dissolve chemically taking up carbon...

South Australian growers will no longer be required to seek local council planning consent for orchard netting...

In what looks set to be a record year for volume, the Argentine cherry sector is increasingly...

by Marc van der Sterren,  Fruit World The Netherlands Data is becoming more important to all stakeholders...

An old dream could come true with blockchain: total transparency of the entire food supply chain from farm to fork. Today’s consumers want to know what they eat – where the food comes from, how it is produced, stored, transported and treated. Suppliers and dealers want to limit their liability, and authorities...

Nominations for the apple and pear industry Awards for Excellence are open until Tuesday, 3 April. Each winner and runner-up will be nominated for the Hort Connections combined industry awards. The Awards for Excellence recognise the outstanding achievements of our industry’s most successful growers, researchers, people and businesses working across all areas...

by Oleg Nikishenkov, Fruit World Russia, Moscow Sergei Sobyanin, Moscow mayor, said that almost one-third of the...

by Daphne and Christine Schmidt, Fruit World Spain, Borriol The current vegetable season 2017/18 is developing satisfactorily...

Smart agri-food chains offer the opportunity for innovation based on a deeper understanding of customer needs. One of the enabling technologies is blockchain, which provides a secure audit trail for transactions, providing evidence of the origin of produce and its cultivation, and also de-risking international trade. Applications for this emerging technology are...

Valencia, Spain. – 07 March 2018). SanLucar, the premium brand for fruit and vegetables, and Maya the...

Launched by Hort Innovation in February, the portal on the Aussie Apples website will enable growers to...

Some 45 million metric tons of food grown in the United States ends up in China. Sales there will fall as it becomes more expensive. There’s more. As steel becomes more expensive, we’ll pay more for tomato sauce. That’s because most of it comes in cans, and those cans – so shiny we call...

From initial reports of detections on Flinders Island in Bass Strait to other detections at Spreyton, Sassafras and then George Town on the Tasmanian mainland. “We first picked up about fruit fly when my wife Linda heard it on ABC Radio,” said Spreyton apple grower, Brett Squibb. “I googled the ABC site...

by David Agren, Fruit World Mexico, Mexico City Small quantities of Mexican avocados started crossing the US...

Liu Ziije, CEO of Goodfarmer, Shanghai, told Fruit World, that , having being one of the major exporters of apples and garlic, fruit imports into China are taking a share of 65% of turnover. Liu said, that a professional banana distribution centre is udner construction, because „the banana is our no. 1...

Orange growers and processors in Florida could be about to get a boost from an unexpected direction...

AUCKLAND:  TOMRA today signed an agreement to acquire 100 percent of the shares in BBC Technologies*. The...

The 6th Blueberry Conference will take place in Ożarów Mazowiecki near Warsaw on 1-2 March 2018. It...

Tom Stenzel, president and CEO of the United Fresh Produce Association talks about changes in consumer behavior in the USA, the growing trend for fresh-cut and fresh fruit combined with proteins as a healthy diet in his interview with the Fruit World at Fruit Logistica 2018. Tom Stenzel is President and CEO...

VALENCIA, SPAIN, 19 February, 2018 — Bio Freshi, one of Europe’s largest importers and marketers of organic...

Over the past decade Hortgro has been pro-actively preparing for the possibility of the occurrence of Bactrocera dorsalis or Oriental Fruit Fly (OFF) in the Western Cape. Hortgro Science’s Crop Protection Programme has been conducting research since 2005 in an effort to prepare for such a possibility, said Hugh Campbell, Hortgro Science’s...

Jaguacy Brasil, located in the main Brazilian region of avocado production, is the main producer and exporter of Hass Avocado in Brazil, and starts its 2018 crop by offering the fruits to the foreign market starting in March/2018. The Brazilian production of Avocado Hass has been growing in recent years, and Jaguacy...

Taking part in the FRUIT WORLD TOUR – What do I get? The FRUIT WORLD TOUR offers...

The German trading house Don Limón, a rather small player in the world of fruit and vegetables...

Interview with Andreas Schindler, CEO, Don Limón – Pilz Schindler GmbH, Hamburg On the occasion of the...

Croptimal performs real time immediate tests and analysis in the field for crops, soil and water, replacing...

At Fruit Logistica Dan Sun, CEO of Harvestmark provided an interesting outlook on the importance of traceability...

Fresh produce is finally in the digital age: The blockchain and traceability solutions will spark a revolution...

The Fruit World Tour is an amazing journey into fresh produce. The journalists of AgroPress in Switzerland...

Pleasanton, Calif., February 6, 2018 — DeltaTrak® will feature the FlashLink BLE (Bluetooth Low Energy) Wireless Monitoring Solution at Fruit Logistica 2018, Hall 23/Stand A-10, February 7-9, 2018, at Berlin ExpoCenter City, in Berlin, Germany. According to Frederick Wu, President and CEO of DeltaTrak, “With the current security feature, shippers have the option to require...

5 February, 2018 – The South African Table Grape Industry (SATI) says the country’s harvest is resilient...

While much of South Africa is enjoying good summer rains, its two western provinces have been hit...

A CRYPTOCURRENCY start-up that was designed to radically alter the fruit and vegetable industry has scammed its...

An opinion by Allan Golombek found in Real Clear Markets Florida tomato farmer Tony DiMare has a...

In May of 2017, USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue moved to make school meals great again by issuing a proclamation in support of more lenient school nutrition standards. Specifically, the proposed rule permits the continued use of whole grain waivers, which exempt certain products from meeting whole grain standards; freezes current sodium limits...

Newswise — GAINESVILLE, Fla. — With citrus greening devastating Florida’s $8.6 billion-a-year citrus industry, three University of Florida scientists will use $10.52 million in federal grants to study ways to help growers cope with the disease, including research on genetic editing that may produce potentially resistant fruit and trees. Since greening –...

How does Japan stand with regard to the food self-sufficiency rate? The calorie-based rate for fiscal 2016 dropped 1.91 percentage points to 37.58 percent, the lowest since 37 percent was recorded in fiscal 1993 when the rice harvest was poor due to a cold spell. Administrative vice farm minister Masaaki Okuhara says...

The last large export of banana from Jamaica was 2007-2008, led by the large estate producers. One...

New Delhi, January 27 (IANS) Exports of fresh fruits and vegetables have slumped by 15 per cent in terms of revenue during April-November 2017, apart from a substantial dip in the export of pulses and wheat. Low demand and supply of onions, tomatoes, bananas and raisins to the top exporting markets was...

MONTREAL – A controversial American proposal that would place seasonal tariffs on a host of North American...

WASHINGTON – Legislation was introduced this past week to promote precision agriculture and rural broadband deployment to the nation’s cropland and ranchland. The “Precision Agriculture Connectivity Act of 2018,” introduced by U.S. Senators Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., would direct the Federal Communications Commission to establish a task force to...

The FRESH INSIDERS NIGHT that is taking place during Fruit Logistica brings together some of the most...