Fruit Logistica, Agritechnica, Interpom. The names roll off the tongue of Quinton Woods as if they were coffee shops down the road. In fact, they are globally recognized trade shows. The first two are in Germany and the last one is in Belgium.
As Canadian growers scout Europe for a competitive edge, these hubs have grown immeasurably as connectors to horticultural technology. John and Cristina Hambly, owners of Gwillimdale Farms, Bradford, Ontario and their sales and plant operations manager, Quinton Woods, have travelled to Europe six times since 2011 to settle on new storage equipment.
These trade shows were the first window to several cooling systems, before travelling into the countryside to see storage facilities. Their quest took them to the northern town of Hardifort, France, not far from the Belgian border. That’s where Klim’Top Controls has its headquarters for harvesting and post-harvest equipment for box and bulk storage. The promotional literature promising improved pack-outs of produce has proven to be very accurate, says Woods.
“We had the first unit in North America in 2018 for carrots and potatoes,” says Woods. “There’s always some skepticism in believing the sales pitch, but after one year of experience, we can say that our potatoes came out with whiter colours in the spring of 2019. Packouts were increased by 15 per cent. We also saved tons of money in electricity costs. We are at 35 to 40 per cent of the electricity costs paid the year before.”
Those savings have spurred the second phase of storage facilities, 42,000 square feet, to be constructed in time for onion and carrot harvest in September 2019. When complete, the side-by-side storages will hold 18,000 pallet boxes in a total of 87,000 square feet. The expectation is to cure onions faster and to store them longer into the spring season. The ability to store into June – and even July -- can reap dividends when selling to buyers who are short of local product before transitioning into new crop.
Source : The Grower