AgroFresh Solutions, has announced two groundbreaking collaborations with Rubens Technologies and Escavox which it says will enhance AgroFresh’s FreshCloud digital platform, a comprehensive data-backed solution letting the produce supply chain to make real-time decisions.

FreshCloud leverages more advanced analytics, monitoring tools and data to extend freshness and reduce food waste from farm to shelf.

Escavox chief executive Luke Wood said with the addition of Rubens Technologies and Escavox solutions, the FreshCloud digital ecosystem is now informed by near real-time data at each crucial step in the produce supply chain: at the grower, in production, in storage, at retail distribution, and during transit. 

“These collaborations enable FreshCloud to provide a fully integrated monitoring system, empowering growers, packers, marketers and shippers to make critical business decisions to improve fruit quality and profitability,” Luke said.

Make informed harvest decisions with Rubens Technologies

FreshCloud Harvest now integrates data from Rubens Technologies’ hand-held spectral scanner which enables growers to quickly and easily collect fruit quality indicators to help them predict the optimal time for picking and assess fruit quality, without damaging the produce.

Using spectral sensing combined with proprietary algorithms, the scanner measures brix, firmness and starch in apples, replacing time-consuming, subjective manual checks with near real-time data.

Rubens Technologies chief executive Daniel Pelliccia said the collaboration combines Rubens Technologies’ innovation with AgroFresh’s expertise in pre- and post-harvest solutions to deliver a unique value proposition, improving fruit quality, reducing waste and offering greater profitability for all stakeholders.

The handheld Rubens Technologies scanner:

• Helps the grower better predict optimum harvest timing and reduces waste by eliminating damaging testing methods.
• Enables larger sample size for improved accuracy, ensuring top-quality fruit reaches the market.
• Cuts testing and grading costs by automating data collection and displaying it within the FreshCloud platform.

Monitor produce quality in transit with Escavox

Escavox delivers a comprehensive, in-transit monitoring solution, capturing and reporting multiple layers of produce and shipping data during travel.

With the integration into a new FreshCloud Transit module, wherever users or their products are, they can receive actionable insights from the Escavox technology to improve the quality and efficiency of fresh food logistics, including calculating predictive shelf life for best use, less rejection and reduced waste.

Luke said harvest quality, minus the impact of the journey, equals consumer quality.

“We take an innovative approach with a focus on the food, not the assets which move it.

“By blending quality and commercial metrics into one place, we can expose problems and opportunities other solutions cannot see, let alone optimise.

“By using data to eradicate waste related to transit, everyone wins,” Luke says.

Escavox data solution:

• Captures near real-time product and shipping conditions through autonomous Escavox Blue Box Trackers, delivering immediate insights into product conditions.
• Empowers stakeholders with actionable insights through intuitive dashboards that reveal inefficiencies and support data driven decisions to improve supply chain performance.
• Streamlines tracking and analysis with automated reporting for seamless supply chain management.
• Drives waste reduction and cost savings by offering detailed visibility across the supply chain.

This integration strengthens leadership in leveraging data and technology to achieve optimal produce freshness and quality.

By adding advanced quality measurement and real-time transit monitoring, FreshCloud becomes an even more powerful tool in reducing food waste, enhancing product quality and increasing sustainability across the entire value chain.