In recent years it has developed heat-control films for the UK market such as the highly acclaimed Luminance THB.
This film has been shown to reduce peak temperatures during the day but also increases the amount of diffuse light available to the crop - resulting in more fruit, higher yields of both strawberry and raspberry, and the potential for higher profits per hectare than normal standard clear film.
Raspberry yields, for example, were shown to have increased by 26 per cent when Luminance THB was used, which equates to £17,500 per hectare (Raffle, 2003 ADAS soft fruit conference) and strawberry yields spiralled by 25 per cent (Tatsiopoulou, 2003).
Another BPI Agri development is Solatrol growth control film. This film has shown huge potential not only to control vigorous cane growth and therefore reduce expensive labour picking costs (since canes are shorter making the fruit easier to pick), but also lessen the time needed to prune canes at the end of the season.
With the added benefit of increasing yield by approximately 23-25 per cent, this is a very interesting development for the raspberry grower (Mpezamihigo, 2003; Haygrove, 2003).
BPI works closely with universities and research centres throughout the world to improve and develop films for the soft-fruit industry but just as important are the trials conducted on UK commercial holdings to confirm the academic findings.
In the UK, the company works particularly closely with the University of Reading’s team of specialists and will be supporting a PhD student to investigate the effects of spectral filters on different attributes over a range of crops including soft fruit. The work will start this autumn with the hope that newer improved films may be developed for the soft-fruit industry.
A range of BPI’s films can also be viewed at Stockbridge Technology Centre where five are being trialled as a demonstration project supported by the Horticultural Development Council. The effects of the films on a range of horticultural crops including nursery stock, cut flowers and bedding are also being observed.
BPI has also developed a new mulch film for weed suppression in the soft-fruit industry. This material is specifically designed to blend in with its surroundings so as not to look out of place in the natural environment.
BPI’s range of technical films can be discussed at stand H6 at Fruit Focus.
No comments yet