Innovation centre leverages company’s research and development expertise along with state-of-the-art laboratories to create new technology hub in Latin America
AgroFresh Solutions has announced the opening of a new global innovation centre in Rancagua, Chile.
The Agtech group’s new centre will be staffed by researchers and operations teams and will support growers, packers, shippers and retailers throughout Latin America.
It will offer customised operational and technical support services and post-harvest solutions to help keep produce fresh longer, reduce food waste and conserve natural resources.
Chile exports more than 2.6m tonnes of fruit annually to more than 100 countries, making it one of the top exporters of produce and fruit in the world.
The country was the first to successfully commercialise SmartFresh, AgroFresh’s ethylene management solution, more than 20 years ago.
AgroFresh said that the centre would allow customers throughout the Latin American region to tap into the problem-solving expertise and capabilities of its scientific and operational experts who are dedicated to helping them improve pathogen protection, maintain fruit and vegetable quality, extend shelf life and minimise post-harvest loss and waste.
“Operational and scientific excellence is the key to providing high-quality services for our customers and we’ll be better able to support the growing produce demand in the region,” said Edgardo Castaneda, vice-president of operations. ”Additionally, with its new state of the art research and lab capabilities and increased capacity, the Rancagua innovation centre will serve as a technical hub for the region and the globe.”
According to the group, the global hub will also be home to some of the world’s foremost post-harvest research and development scientists.
AgroFresh will use the innovation centre to continue to develop its produce freshness product and digital solutions, such as Harvista, ActiMist, and FreshCloud.
In addition, the centre will support the Control-Tec ECO application equipment which it said had helped cherry customers in Chile reduce water usage by up to 60 per cent during the packing process.
“Serving our customers and working closely together to build customised solutions to help protect produce throughout the supply chain is our top priority,” said Narciso Vivot, commercial director, Latin America. ”We are excited to leverage these new capabilities and increased capacity to enable us to provide support to more customers and a wider variety of crops well into the future.”
The Rancagua global innovation centre is one of AgroFresh’s seven such centres on four continents in key fruit growing regions.
