In 2003, agtech company AgroFresh launched its flagship ripening management solution, SmartFresh. This ethylene postharvest management tool pauses the ripening process in fruits, vegetables and floral products so that softening and ripening occur much more slowly, according to a news release.
Since SmartFresh’s inception 20 years ago, AgroFresh has pioneered numerous scientific and commercial applications of the technology to keep produce fresher, longer, the release said.
Today, thanks to numerous years of close cooperation with international researchers, universities and customers — as well as an investment in seven global innovation centers and strategic partnerships — AgroFresh has extensive knowledge of fresh produce quality management, according to the release. The company said its team continues to expand the possibilities by offering new product formats of the SmartFresh quality system to fit multiple crops in the field, in storage rooms and in transit.
Related news: AgroFresh acquires Tessara, expands post-harvest solutions portfolio
AgroFresh Chief Technology Officer Duncan Aust oversees research and development, regulatory and external innovation.
“AgroFresh prides itself on working with the farmer, the grower and the packer to really understand what the needs and challenges are, and therefore opportunities, to ultimately deliver for the consumer a better experience,” Aust said in a video explaining how SmartFresh has made a positive impact. “We enjoy working very closely with the scientists that we have on our team, the scientists within some of the larger grower-packer operations and the individual farmer in the orchard.”
The 1-MCP growth regulator behind the SmartFresh solutions was discovered nearly 30 years ago, in 1994, at North Carolina State University by biochemist Edward Sisler and horticulturalist Sylvia Blankenship, ushering in new possibilities for the fresh produce and floral industries, according to the release.
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When asked about bringing the technology to market and the long-term vision of 1-MCP, Blankenship had several insights and stories to share from her perspective as a horticulturist who could only dream of the impact her discovery has made.
“Never in a million years did I think that things would end up the way that they are,” Blankenship said in the video. “My goal from the time I took my job was to help the produce industry. My goal was to come up with a better-quality product that would save time and save money.”
Both Aust and Blankenship are motivated by sustaining an industry they share a passion for, the release said. The benefits of the technology throughout the global supply chain have continued to scale from Sisler and Blankenship’s lab bench to Aust’s pipeline of innovative solutions that work to solve the global issue of food loss and waste, the release said.
To learn more about what Aust and Blankenship had to say on the 20th anniversary of SmartFresh, watch their interviews on the AgroFresh YouTube channel.
