Revolutionary Upgrades to Sensors and Insight Tools Lead to Better Bottom Lines for Processors. 

The booming popularity of kettle chips (known in some parts of the world as ‘crisps’) brings potato processors a mixture of opportunities and challenges. Opportunities lie in the strong demand for a potato-based product that commands a premium price. Challenges arise because what originated as a low-volume ‘artisan’ snack must now be produced in vast and faultless quantities for big-brand retailers with reputations to protect.

For vegetable processors, the saying that “knowledge is power” is especially true now that they can use the new TOMRA Insight web-based data platform. By gathering detailed data from sorting machines, this subscription-based service gives processors more knowledge about what’s happening on their lines and the power to make better-informed decisions. This is transforming sorting from an operational process into a strategic management tool.

TOMRA Visual Assist virtually places TOMRA's expert in front of the customer's machine, enabling a fast response and, during the COVID-19 pandemic, overcoming travel restrictions and addressing safety concerns.

This guest article is an expert opinion from Cindy van Rijswick, Senior Fresh Produce Specialist from RaboResearch Food & Agribusiness

Processing organic vegetables, once a niche specialty, is now big business. However, while crops grown without pesticides are regarded by consumers as exceptionally natural and safe, they bring processing lines additional complications and risks.    

Imagine that vegetable farmers could suddenly multiply their yields per acre. Or that the vegetable-growing season continued with ideal climatic conditions forever. Or that local soil quality and climate didn't matter. Or that there was no need to use pesticides because rodents and insects were nowhere to be seen. Or that large volumes of vegetables could be grown and processed on the edge of urban areas, slashing the time and expense of transporting produce to retail outlets. Growers and processors would be busy all year round in a predictably manageable way.

The free-to-download publication identifies how vegetable processors will be affected by changing market demands

Cloud-based service unlocks the power of big data to monitor and optimize food sorting processes.

In response to travel restrictions arising from COVID-19, TOMRA Food is now offering online demonstrations of its sorting machines. This new initiative makes it possible for customers to test-run TOMRA’s machines without visiting TOMRA in person. Here we share answers to frequently asked questions about these online demonstrations.