FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

An artificial intelligence approach to the apple industry’s most common quality test

Ontario agtech firm Croptracker Inc is proud to announce the launch of Starch Quality Vision; the latest artificial intelligence assessment tool for apple growers. The Starch Quality Vision (SQV) technology empowers orchard managers and apple growers to empirically and accurately score starch pattern index tests without the need for a trained assessor.

The starch-iodine test is one of the most important pre-harvest tests in the apple industry. In the weeks up to harvest time, growers may perform dozens of starch tests on hundreds of apples as they chart the maturity of the fruit and plan their harvests accordingly.

“What we learned early on in development is that a lot of growers are just eyeballing their starch tests to their best guess, and the human eye’s best guess is extremely subjective,” said Croptracker CEO Matt Deir. “During testing, even highly trained orchard managers who have been doing this for years scored the exact same fruit differently, even just five minutes apart. Growers use this test to determine their harvest dates, so a consistent score is critical to maximizing the quality and shelf life.”

The leading problem analysts tend to point to is this: a general decline in agricultural interest across the board (at least in North America). Experts claim this declining trend in agricultural interest has many contributing factors, such as:

To develop Starch Quality Vision, the Croptracker team met with orchard managers from around the world to learn from the best in the business. With their help, SQV AI has trained on thousands of scored starch pattern tests.

The SQV software will be provided to Ontario Apple Growers members as part of their ongoing partnership with Cropracker. “This will provide us with more information on the quality of apples we are receiving during harvest.”, states Deon Boonzaier of Algoma Orchards in Newcastle, Ontario.

Using SQV, apple growers can be sure of the consistency and accuracy of their starch assessments, using just a mobile phone or tablet - Android or iOS.

SQV will be available starting August 15th. For more information on Starch Quality Vision, please visit the product page or contact Sales@croptracker.com.

Croptracker develops agtech solutions for industry leaders. Located in Eastern Ontario, Canada, our mission is to make crop production safer, more efficient, and more profitable. Designed in partnership with fresh market producers and distributors, every tool we create is based on direct industry feedback. Croptracker’s award-winning farm software optimizes recordkeeping, labor tracking, production and cost management. Our integrative Harvest Quality Vision technology offers instant empirical analysis of crop samples exactly when you need it. Optimize your harvest season with Croptracker’s customizable solutions. Visit Croptracker.com to learn more about our products and contact us for app based solutions.

In partnership with Two-a-Day Group; the system is capable of scanning over 4800 apples or pears within 30 seconds with a 98% accuracy

Kingston, ON, CA: After months of developing a brand new solution and thoroughly beta-testing the product for a year, Croptracker is ready to announce the release of their Overhead Bin Scanning system for Harvest Quality Vision (HQV). Built concurrently with their recently released HQV 3.0, their overhead bin system allows packers to know what is coming into the pack shed before the fruit even comes off the truck. While fruit is in the queue, plans can be made to get it on the packing line, rather than trying to figure out what is coming down the line at high speeds. Large growers can also use this system to know what exactly has left the farm.

The overhead scanning system can handle the rigors of a transportation corridor and function at peak efficiency day in and day out. This system is capable of scanning over 4800 apples or pears within 30 seconds with a 98% accuracy. This first build also incorporates automatic detection of trucks entering the scanning corridor without any human input. It is also flexible enough to be built upon one worker activating the start and stop of a scan at a lower price point.

This entire system was designed, developed and built by Croptracker in partnership with the Two-a-Day Group in the Elgin district, Western Cape, South Africa. Minimizing labor and skill requirements, HQV overhead scanning allows packers to overcome logistical challenges and to continue producing at high efficiencies. The Two-a-Day Group is well informed about the fruits they receive before it is time to make important logistical decisions about storage and sales.

Chris Petzer from the Two-a-Day Group says, “Croptracker’s Harvest Quality Vision has given Two-a-Day a whole new dynamic in doing business, adding product predictability and insight into making critical business decisions proactively, instead of a reactive response. We like to call it our ‘virtual pre-sorter’. Our partnership with the Croptracker team has been a fantastic experience during this pioneering project. They are professional, innovative and committed to any resolve, always staying positive during any challenge. I am looking forward to our ongoing partnership.”

Croptracker believes this scanning platform can be used to improve efficiency, increase productivity and knowledge for packing houses that receive large quantities of fruit in short periods of time.

Matt Deir, Founder and CEO of Croptracker says, “Our new Overhead Scanning technology shows how we are innovating in the agrotech industry for our clients' needs. We have created a technologically advanced system, while keeping it cost effective. We are very happy that our system is allowing Two-a-Day to make proactive decisions before their fruit even gets off their trucks.”

If you are interested in using Croptracker's handheld HQV 3.0 as a first step to implementing an overhead bin scanning system at your facilities, feel free to book a demo .

Croptracker develops agtech solutions for industry leaders. Located in Eastern Ontario, Canada, our mission is to make crop production safer, more efficient, and more profitable. Designed in partnership with fresh market producers and distributors, every tool we create is based on direct industry feedback. Croptracker’s award-winning farm software optimizes recordkeeping, labor tracking, production and cost management. Our integrative Harvest Quality Vision technology offers instant empirical analysis of crop samples exactly when you need it. Optimize your harvest season with Croptracker’s customizable solutions. Visit Croptracker.com to learn more about our products and to contact us about app based solutions.

Over the past 12 months, Croptracker has developed, released and updated an incredible number of Harvest and Harvest Quality Vision features. In recognition of Croptracker’s accomplishments, Agtech Breakthrough Awards has recognized Croptracker with its 2022 Overall Harvest Solution Provider of the Year award.

Croptracker is proud to provide growers a comprehensive solution within its application for monitoring the entire harvesting season, so that information and data are integrated into clients’ decision making processes. Croptracker is a leader in crop based detection and reporting with its Harvest Quality Vision and its interconnected 17 additional modules including Harvest, Spray, Quality Control and Storage.

In accepting the 2022 Overall Harvest Solution Provider of the Year award, Matt Deir CEO and Founder of Croptracker says: ”We have been able to leverage growers’ expertise over the last 16 years in building software that is used all over the world. We hope to continue to build solutions that add value for fruit and vegetables growers for many years to come!”

Croptracker’s software is applicable and used by growers, packers, shippers and receivers from single family farms to multinational agriculture corporations. As of 2022, Croptracker is being used by over 1,200 farming organizations all around the world.

Book a demo to start using this award winning software and simplify your agriculture operation to today.

Croptracker develops agtech solutions for industry leaders. Located in Eastern Ontario, Canada, our mission is to make crop production safer, more efficient, and more profitable. Designed in partnership with fresh market producers and distributors, every tool we create is based on direct industry feedback. Croptracker’s award-winning farm software optimizes recordkeeping, labor tracking, production and cost management. Our integrative Harvest Quality Vision technology offers instant empirical analysis of crop samples exactly when you need it. Optimize your harvest season with Croptracker’s customizable solutions. Visit Croptracker.com to learn more about our products and to contact us about app based solutions.

Croptracker is pleased to announce the pilot launch of their crop management and record-keeping software by the BC Fruit Growers' Association.

The BC Fruit Growers' Association has represented the interests of British Columbian fruit growers’ interests since 1889 and aims to help create a healthy food system for the long-term prosperity of the tree fruit industry.  It advocates governments for positive change to risk management programs, such as crop insurance.  It also provides services and products to growers - the most recent service being access to the Croptracker platform.

Croptracker will capture information electronically that was previously lost in manual, written records.  "The pilot project will establish how this once-isolated, written information can be used to generate value for growers," said Pinder Dhaliwal, President of the BCFGA.   Croptracker will introduce automated alerts and enhance traceability, and provide the ability to draw on recorded activities to better manage the farm.  Croptracker will be linked to the BC Tree Fruit Production Guide to ensure that all crop recommendations are up-to-date and current.

“We’re very pleased that the BC Fruit Growers Association is bringing Croptracker to its members,” says Matt Deir, CEO and founder. “Every grower within the association will now have full access to the record-keeping, reporting, traceability, and other functionalities Croptracker offers."

Croptracker is a cloud-based crop management software platform that combines data from RFID systems, weather stations, soil sensors, and user-inputted information to help growers, co-ops, and associations make better decisions and be more profitable. Starting in 2006 with the consult of the Ontario Apple Growers Association, Deir and his team began building Croptracker into the powerful software used today by more than 2,000 growers from 41 countries.

Croptracker is unique among agricultural software platforms, as it is built on a foundation of collaboration with Canadian growers.  Over 12 years and countless software advancements later, Croptracker continues to be shaped by grower input as it expands around the world. As a result, the software reflects and combats today’s most pertinent challenges facing growers.

To open their free Croptracker account, members of the BC Fruit Growers' Association are asked to contact Brenda Jorde, Member Services Coordinator and Replant Admin at 1-800-619-9022.