At the International Food and Drink Event in London, key figures from the produce sector, including representatives from Dole UK, Worldwide Fruit, and Clarifruit, discussed the transformative potential of artificial intelligence (AI) in the produce and fresh fruit supply chain. They highlighted the efficiency and speed AI technology could bring to quality grading, addressing common supply chain challenges from supplier to consumer.
Willie Wood of Worldwide Fruit underscored AI's potential to mitigate issues like climate change, unpredictable weather, and shipping delays, which currently result in financial losses. Drew Reynolds from Dole UK emphasized the stagnant nature of quality control procedures in the UK, which have not evolved significantly over the past 15 years. He sees AI as a solution for producing consistent quality in naturally variable products. Reynolds further speculated on AI's future role in enhancing internal and external quality assessments, particularly for pre-prepared fruits.
Elad Mardix of Clarifruit shared insights on how AI could eliminate manual labor and subjectivity from the growing process, a step his company is already taking. The discussion underscored the broad consensus on AI's potential to address longstanding challenges in the produce supply chain.
Source: grocerygazette.co.uk
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