Farm-to-fork sorting capabilities

GROWERS, packers and processors of fresh fruits and vegetables will find that they can always customise a Tomra system for their sorting needs. These solutions, which include the Halo, the Primus Gemini, and the Field Potato sorter, are fully modular and allow for feature permutations, according to vice president and sales manager, Diarmuid Meagher.

As the option for sensor-based optical food sorting, the Halo uses the latest advancements to sort and grade produce based on physical factors, such as detailed size, geometry and shape; subtle blemishes, colours and defects; damage; and foreign material. The machine gently handles food and counts high capacity, low maintenance, flexibility as well increased profitability, as its selling points. Further benefits include:

?Labor reductions of up to 80%

?Increases in throughput and yield as high as 25% and 4%, respectively

?Faster pack, low operational costs and improved product quality.

Applications for processors include skin or peeled potatoes, carrots, apricots and peaches, pear halves, tomatoes, green beans, citrus fruits – such as oranges and mandarins – as well as onions. Fresh and pack applications include: salad greens; small, large, russet, sweet and main crop potatoes; carrots and parsnips; pickles, cucumbers and gherkins; and tomatoes.

Primus Gemini technology reliably sorts for colour and texture (softness) in fresh products then uses the data to automatically determine acceptability and grading for higher-end product. The system incorporates multiple inspection zones equipped with an intuitive graphical user interface for optimal sorting of small fruits, such as blueberries and strawberries, and cut vegetables like green beans.

“The Primus Gemini sorts multiple fruit applications with defects such as discolorations, shrivelling in softness, hail and insect damage, plus foreign material, delivering a high quality end product, meeting modern consumer demands, and providing a very fast return on investment,” explains Karel Strubbe sales manager, the Americas and Oceania, Tomra.

Offering high capacity, user-friendly operation and low maintenance, the machine provides flexibility and gentle handling. In the first inspection zone, a camera checks the material for colour differences and removes off-colour products. The second inspection zone uses lasers to check product structure; it is the stage at which soft or damaged fruit as well as foreign material are removed. The defects are ejected upward by a puff of air and collected on a reject belt. By ejecting upward, the good products are not disturbed nor subjected to damage by drops or high acceleration forces.

Like the Halo, the product offers higher yield and throughput, reduced labour requirements, increased uniformity in colour and ripeness in packs, and the salvaging of traditionally uneconomic fruit.

The Field Potato Sorter (FPS) enables growers, processors and packer companies to lower labour and potato storage costs significantly, whilst raising product quality and yield. With a unique, patent-pending biometric signature identification (BSI) technology, the FPS provides a multi-spectral representation of the visible and near infrared (NIR) spectral zones, which allows it to analyse and identify organic characteristics and compositions of all objects. It can therefore distinguish dirt clods, stones, foreign material, and rotten potatoes, even those with substantial soil covering. 

The machine can be used for different varieties and sizes of unwashed potato, whilst processors can use measurements the FPS makes and records, alongside predictive analysis, to optimize procedures within their operations.

“The FPS is replacing hard-to-find manpower needed to clean the product stream going into and out of potato storage. The robust, waterproof and user-friendly machine is compact and available in various widths to fit all specific capacities up to 70,000 kilos an hour. The sorting machine is compatible with other potato grading equipment, but can also be used on its own to sort harvested potatoes, before or after storage,” says Mr Meagher.

TOMRA Sorting Solutions creates sensor-based technologies for sorting, peeling and process analytics and with two strong brands, Odenberg and Best, for food and raw materials (www.tomra.com/food). As one of the most advanced providers of sensor-based sorting solutions worldwide, its global reach also allows it to deliver an enhanced service offering, with a shared service network ensuring the company is always close to its customers.