Technology has had a place in the fresh produce industry for a long time, whether it’s the first UPC bar code scan in the 1970s to optical sorters in packinghouses.
But what about the future?
Carbon Robotics founder and CEO Paul Mikesell and Verdant Technologies Chief Revenue Officer Matthew Aronson spoke with The Packer about what technology will impact the fresh produce industry in 2025 and beyond.
AI’s prevalence
Aronson and Mikesell said artificial intelligence will play a key role this year in helping farmers better grow and manage crops with precision and efficiency through automation.
“Advancements in deep learning are enabling real-time crop health statistics and monitoring, empowering growers to make data-driven decisions about planting, weed control, irrigation, fertilization and disease prevention,” Mikesell said. “AI is no longer a futuristic concept that just chats with you or gives you better online search results; it’s becoming a cornerstone for sustainable, scalable and profitable agriculture in the real world, ensuring specialty crop farmers can thrive.”
Aronson said the industry is seeing firsthand how incorporating AI can benefit fresh produce.
“There are already great examples of AI being used to address labor challenges (Carbon Robotics), automate quality control (Clarifruit), optimize inventory management (Afresh, Shelf Engine, Fresho), provide real-time business insights (GrubAssist) and reduce food waste (Winnow),” Aronson said.
Aronson said he’s optimistic about how AI can help drive consumer demand for fresh produce through personalization, education and engagement.
“When you consider that only 10% of people in the U.S. eat enough fruits and vegetables [according to the Centers for Disease Control Prevention], the positive domino effects of a healthier-eating population would be unimaginable,” he said.
Health-focused agenda
Both Aronson and Mikesell said consumers’ increasing interest in food as medicine will fuel fresh produce in many ways. Aronson said this focus on nutrient-dense foods has the potential to reshape how food, health care and technology converge.
“Technology has already begun enabling positive change, with innovations in AI (Brightseed, Zoe), blockchain (IBM Food Trust) and [internet-connected devices] (wearables, smart appliances) paving the way. As a wise man once told me: Watch this space,” Aronson said.
Smart implements
Mikesell said farming implements equipped with advanced AI, computer vision and robotics will continue to help growers automate tasks such as planting, weeding, thinning, spraying and pruning with pinpoint accuracy. This accuracy will help reduce labor costs and waste and boost yields.
“As these innovations continue to evolve, they are giving specialty crop growers the ability to optimize every square inch of their fields, conserving resources and ensuring they can meet rising costs and consumer demands sustainably,” he said. “In 2025, smart implements will become an essential part of the precision agriculture toolkit, ushering in a new era of profitability and environmental responsibility for specialty crop farmers.”
Biotechnology
Aronson said biotechnology will continue to transform the fresh produce industry. Navigating public perception, he said, will be critical to the success of continual biotechnological advancements in the fresh produce industry.
“While there’s no foolproof blueprint that I’m aware of, the words trust, transparency and education come to mind,” he said, “I’m particularly encouraged by the innovation we’re witnessing with nutrient management (Pivot Bio), crop protection (Lytos, AgroSpheres) and gene editing (Pairwise), which together are driving a more efficient, sustainable and consumer-centric food system.”
