Mechanical Fruit Picker Roundup

Mechanical Fruit Picker Roundup CROPS Miscellaneous In the past fruit growers relied on labor to handpick fruit for the fresh fruit market High labor costs and the challenge of finding workers have growers turning to mechanical harvesters instead Several manufacturers have introduced equipment that promises to pick fruit gently and efficiently It’s estimated that one mechanical picker with a crew of four can do as much work as 80 hand-pickers     Here are a few of the fresh fruit harvesters we found on the market Oxbo International manufactures equipment for many niche agricultural products and worked with Washington state researchers on developing surfaces to reduce bruised fruit They sell SoftSurface kits that are suspended and fit on existing and new machines www oxbocorp com The Fulcrum Fresh Harvester made by A&B Packing Equipment in Lawrence Mich features a wide 63-in opening to minimize loss as the fruit goes into a tunnel They say that with its design with horizontal rotary heads and guide rails that lower the bush close to the sloped padded harvesting beds for minimal drop makes it the “most gentle harvester available today ” However unlike other harvesters that have overhead platforms to pack lugs separate wagons are needed to pile the lugs of fruit www abpacking com     Littau Harvester Stayton Ore has more than 2 500 of its berry harvesters sold to producers throughout the world The company tests equipment on its own farm and developed the True Orbit shaker head with tines that twirl to create less shock on the plants and angled catch surfaces that reduce losses to 5 percent or less With adjustable features it’s versatile for a wide variety of fruits www littauharvester com     A couple of overseas companies have other ideas for equipment BSK of Serbia uses blasts of air to pick fruit with the Kokan a tow-behind harvester that doesn’t have contact with the plants or bushes With easy adjustments for the pulsating air jets velocity and frequency and pneumatic pillows for soft landing it can be used on a variety of fresh fruits www airharvesters com     The Harvy 500 manufactured by FineField of the Netherlands utilizes bendable brushes and workers who shake the blueberry bushes to drop the ripe fruit into a conveyor system that includes air to blow out debris before the berries fall gently into lugs and crates Plans were to test them in British Columbia this year www finefield nl

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