The AgroFresh Innovation Center in Rancagua was the setting for the AgroFresh Xperience Harvista event, a meeting promoted by AgroFresh with the aim of fostering the exchange of information between professionals in the cherry industry and presenting the most recent results of the Harvista solution.
The event opened with inspiring words of welcome from Denny Vidal, Commercial Manager of AgroFresh Chile, followed by a presentation by Juliana Manco, AgroFresh's Marketing Manager for Latin America, who highlighted AgroFresh's significant contributions to reducing food losses and waste. The company has been dedicated to developing innovative solutions that help extend the shelf life of agricultural products, contributing to a more sustainable supply chain.
Along the same lines, Juliana Manco, Marketing Manager of AgroFresh, highlighted the company's commitment to supporting producers at all stages of the production chain. "Well, at AgroFresh we are a company specializing in post-harvest fruit and we support producers in all processes of the chain. Today we are here at our innovation center located in Rancagua for a special AgroFresh Xperience, with the purpose of talking about Harvista in cherries. We are going to present the results that we worked on in the 2023 season and how Harvista is supporting producers to have better fruit sets and yields in their orchards. It is also super important to have the presence of advisors such as Carlos Tapia who tell us about the expectations for the 2024-25 season for cherries. Also, Francisca Barros from Trío Kimün who told us about the work in orchards to produce quality cherries and finally we showed our technology that allows us to identify when to apply products such as Harvista and complete monitoring in the field," explained Manco.
Next, Claudio Moreno, Director of Research and Development at AgroFresh, presented Harvista. He explained that the main active ingredient of the product, 1-MCP, plays a crucial role in inhibiting the perception of ethylene during flowering. This process results in a significant improvement in the flower setting of cherry plants, increasing the productivity and quality of the fruits.
“We want to share with clients, producers and main users of what we have in Chile. That is why we want them to come and get to know our laboratory and be part of the process of creation, development and adaptation of our proposals. The truth is that I am absolutely convinced that this type of event like AgroFresh Xperience must be held and I wish we could do many more, because the issue of disseminating scientific data is essential to generate trust, not only between companies but also with the products and technologies we offer, and if we do not have the presence of producers it is much more difficult to do so,” concluded Moreno.
Carlos Flores, technical manager of AgroFresh Chile, presented results of the use of Harvista, highlighting an increase in the fruit harvest of up to 19%. He emphasized how the AgroFresh application service is complemented by the FreshCloud Harvest platform, which monitors the development stages of the plants. This integration allows to recommend the ideal moment for the application of Harvista, optimizing the results and maximizing the efficiency of the orchards.
Francisca Barros, researcher and consultant at Trio Kimun, highlighted the importance of proper field management for fruit quality. She demonstrated how Harvista's results helped to obtain high-quality fruit, reinforcing the product's effectiveness.
“I believe that this is a very good opportunity to bring together the production and orchard aspects, along with the technical aspects of post-harvest, in order to make producers aware of the advantages of a product that is applied in the orchard and that has as its primary objective to increase productivity, but that could also have the potential (we must continue to evaluate) to improve the quality and condition of the fruit that the market demands,” said Barros.
Carlos Tapia, founder and director of the consultancy Avium Spa, addressed the climatic and field management challenges for the upcoming cherry season, offering a comprehensive view of the obstacles that producers will face and how to overcome them.
Participants also had the opportunity to visit the facilities of the AgroFresh Innovation Center, which includes a showroom of specialized equipment and laboratories. Denny Vidal, commercial manager of AgroFresh Chile, highlighted the importance of the event: “Today’s event is to set a benchmark to increase the productivity of cherry fields, especially for producers, by offering them an integrated Harvista and FreshCloud Harvest solution to monitor our clients’ fields and offer better recommendations, maximizing the results of producers.”
The AgroFresh Xperience Harvista reaffirmed AgroFresh’s commitment to innovation and sustainability in agricultural production, providing participants with valuable knowledge and tools to improve the productivity and quality of cherries.
For more information about Harvista and other AgroFresh solutions, please visit the company's official website https://www.agrofresh.com/.
