Following up on our recent research for our resource page on Near-Infrared (NIR) technology for the fresh produce industry, we have created a technology round up of NIR and DA (Differential Absorbance) tools on the market today.

Quality assessment of fresh produce is undergoing rapid technological advancements, shifting from reliance on slow, destructive laboratory methods (such as penetrometers and refractometers) toward high-throughput, non-invasive spectral analysis. Though this technology is relatively new to fresh produce, several companies have jumped ahead of the curve to calibrate NIR spectrometers for fruit and vegetable analysis.

Portable NIR tools have a longer history in construction, manufacturing and geological industries. Some of the brands we will review first created NIR tools for these other industries, but a few agricultural tech manufacturers have also entered the market. We have focused this article only on hand held NIR tools, including DA meters, which have a smaller and specific functionality for chlorophyll level assessment.

This software updates blog covers features and fixes from October 6 through 17, 2025. Ensure your Croptracker mobile app is up to date to take advantage of these updates. Read on to learn more and get in touch with us at support@croptracker.com for more information.

Brix degree measuring is an important quality metric for specialty crop growers and horticulture. Brix° levels inform both harvest planning, storage, packing and sales decision making. The accuracy and utility of field Brix readings depend significantly on managing both environmental inputs and sampling consistency. As a result, ensuring the testing tools work well and sampling processes and reporting are standardized is vital for making properly informed decisions. In this article we detail the factors influencing Brix test results, explain refractometer model options and have compared several popular Brix refractometers popular with fresh produce growers and packers.

Speciality fruit and vegetable growers and packers are facing pressure from all sides. In an increasingly consolidated market with steep labor and input costs, it can be difficult to gain any competitive advantage.

One of the strategies produce marketers have gone to more in the past few years is specialty, mixed variety packaging. A unique or curated mix of produce can be a key differentiator in a crowded market. A producer can brand a special "garden salad mix" or a "heirloom tomato medley" to attract consumers and potentially command a higher price point.

In this Croptracker use case blog we will outline how growers can maintain traceability requirements and productivity while creating mixed variety packed products in the field, greenhouse or from storage.