Latest News From Packer Tech

Chicago-based Hazel Technologies has partnered with New Zealand rural supplies cooperative Farmlands to provide Hazel Trex technology to kiwifruit growers.

Vegpro International, Sherrington, Quebec, is switching packaging of its Fresh Attitude salads to 100% recycled and recyclable plastic containers from Cascades.

Family Tree Farms, Reedley, Calif., added two new Unitec sorting lines for blueberries this season, following installation of Unitec equipment for blueberries and peaches in 2018 and 2019.

Tomra Food has opened a Latin America regional headquarters in Santiago, Chile.

The United Fresh Produce Association, Washington, D.C., has promoted Jennifer McEntire to senior vice president of food safety and technology.

TerMir Inc., Raleigh, N.C., has received a $100,000 AgTech Innovation Prize for its citrus greening disease treatment.

Oxnard, Calif.-based Mission Produce has entered an exclusive partnership with Hazel Technologies for a new program called AvoLast that keeps fruit ripe longer.

Peruvian exporter Fundo Los Paltos will use the shelf-life extending product from Chicago-based Hazel Technologies on an increasing share of its mango exports.

C.H. Robinson, Eden Prairie, Minn., and Microsoft are working to provide real-time visibility in the supply chain, a partnership that will accelerate innovation in transportation, according to the companies.

Brooklyn, N.Y.-based Upward Farms is expanding and rebranding, including a rebrand from Seed & Roe and construction of a new Brooklyn aquaponics farm headquarters.

Sustainability is changing innovation as companies rethink packaging to tackle environmental waste, according to a survey from Smurfit Kappa.

They say you have to break a few eggs to make an omelet. Now you could say the same action could help keep produce fresh.

A Mexican table grape grower-shipper has reported successful results shipping to Asia when using shelf-life extending sachets from Hazel Technologies, Chicago.

The success of United Fresh 2020 LIVE! laid the groundwork for United Fresh to use that virtual platform as United Fresh LIVE! 365, touted as a year-round online marketplace and educational resource.

June online grocery sales jumped 9% compared with May, according to a survey from Brick Meets Click/Mercatus.

ProSeal America, Richmond, Va., has a new tray positioning system that eliminates the trial and error usually associated with establishing the spacing of trays in the sealing process.

Terphane has films that use a process that avoid chemical solvent coatings to provide antifogging of produce containers, allowing a heat-sealed package that shows the product clearly even when there’s condensation.

PureFresh Sales, Selma, Calif., will be using shelf life extending products from Hazel Technologies, Chicago, to keep its fruit fresher.

The COVID-19 crisis has increased the desire for greater visibility into all of the fresh food supply chain.

Western Growers Insurance Services, Irvine, Calif., has fine-tuned its wearable technology, called the Connected Worker Program, to prevent agricultural employees from injury — including COVID-19 functions too.

Apeel Sciences, Santa Barbara, Calif., is expanding distribution of limes treated to extend shelf life through Robinson Fresh.

Episode 5 of Tip of the Iceberg Podcast features an interview with Karen Lewis, Washington State University regional tree fruit specialist, about the future of robotic apple harvesting.

Eurofins Scientific and QFresh Lab have a cooperative agreement to provide a full-service solution for food safety testing and shelf life quality for fresh-cut produce and salad kits.

Giro Pack has new packing equipment that the fastest and most versatile line the company has offered.

How close are robotic apple harvesting machines to commercial deployment?

The Stewardship Index for Specialty Crops and SupplyShift announced the soft launch of the new SISC Stewardship Calculator. 

Clear Labs has received the International Association for Food Protection’s 2020 Food Safety Innovation Award.

Emerson, St. Louis, is focusing on cold chain best practices to minimize food waste and loss as sponsor of the second annual World Refrigeration Day on June 26.

Israel-based technology company ClariFruit is helping growers better classify fruit quality before it is packed and distributed, and company president Elad Mardix said the savings could be huge.

D’Arrigo Bros. of California, Salinas, has implemented touch-screen shipping kiosks at its shipping facility to improve efficiencies

The Packer and Farm Journal are presenting two free web seminars on technology and how it can solve problems from traceability to food waste and supply chain visibility.

Growers with New Zealand kiwifruit marketer Zespri International will be using a new product from Hazel Technologies to improve production.

Many unanswered questions still hang over the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, but the health crisis, which froze some food sales outlets and forced major alterations in others,  also changed consumer buying habits.

Fifth Season, Pittsburgh, is partnering with National Hockey League Hall of Famer Mario Lemieux, and has a new direct-to-consumer website and service.

A trial with GS1 US and four traceability solution providers has shown that multiple traceability systems can interoperate, exchanging information on a product’s supply chain journey in the food system.

Mucci Farms is adding two U.S. facilities — in Romulus, Mich., and San Antonio — continuing an expansion of the Kingsville, Ontario-based company.

Holistic Solutions Global, a grower and distributor of Dominican Republic tropical fruit, will be using shelf life extension products from Hazel Technologies on mangoes and other fruit.

BrightFarms has started construction on a 280,000-square-foot hydroponic greenhouse in Hendersonville, N.C.

Douglas Rockstead, an engineer for Tri-Pak Machinery Inc., Harlingen, Texas, has died.

Beumer Corp., Somerset, N.J., has appointed Joseph Dzierzawski president and CEO.

Eagle Eye Produce, Idaho Falls, Idaho, continues to ship Idaho-grown red potatoes, thanks to investments in storage technology.

Sinclair International has appointed John Rogers to commercial director of North America

Procurant, Los Gatos, Calif., has a new cloud-based traceability service.

Blythe, Calif.-based Fisher Ranch has expanded melon exports by extending the commodity’s storage window with the use of SmartFresh.

Mission Produce Inc., Oxnard, Calif., is building a massive distribution center in Laredo, Texas, for Mexican avocados.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture and other groups have invested nearly $47 million in research over the past six years through the Huanglongbing Multiagency Coordination Group.

Onions Etc. is upping its production capacity this year, said Darrell Kelson, CEO.

The Produce Marketing Association has a new online produce safety course, the first offering in its FreshEd Academy educational platform.

Inline Plastics has revamped its popular line of Safe-T-Fresh Rectangles.

West Pak Avocado has made changes to facilities to ensure they have the latest technology, while taking precautions for worker safety during the pandemic.