Harvest-Assist Technology is Getting Closer

Harvest is finally winding down for tree fruit growers. Throughout the country, apple and pear prices are good, and could get better. The sweet cherry season could have been better, but was a welcome rebound from 2009.

However, this is farming, so there must be a dark cloud somewhere.

Labor, unfortunately, might be the most ominous cloud on the horizon. Thanks to a down economy, we have enough orchard workers for now, but just barely. In 2010, H-2A programs, while working for some operations, are clearly not suited to provide the hundreds of thousands of workers needed in orchards throughout the country. And we cannot rely on Stephen Colbert, either.

But, wait! Could those clouds of labor woe be parting? Now, for the first time, it appears harvest-assist equipment is poised to go commercial.

At least three independent efforts are underway, and their prototypes are undergoing rigorous testing in California, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Washington. They are also undergoing continual upgrading in machine shops when they aren’t running.

All three efforts have focused principally on apple harvest, although it is clear each could be utilized for other tree fruit with some modification. All are designed to assist rather than replace the human front end of harvest. Each relies on a person physically identifying and picking individual fruit and includes platforms for picking the upper canopy. All will greatly improve the productivity, comfort, safety, and quality control of the harvest crew. All are aware of the need to minimize damage to fruit.

Similar, But Distinctive

The most complex project, a joint venture of Oxbo International Corp. and Picker Technologies, combines a highly-regarded ag equipment manufacturer with a start-up engineering firm. They have developed a dedicated track-based machine with novel, sophisticated transport, sorting, and pass-through bin handling capabilities. The transport system uses flexible pneumatic tubing, which singulates fruit from tree to bin.

While initially focused on apple picking, the machine has performed well with canning peaches and shows promise for many types of produce. Of particular note, the proprietary software and custom sorting component features on-the-go analysis of fruit number, size, and quality attributes, thus facilitating separation of packable and cull fruit in the orchard. The current machine performs best in high-density systems with planar fruiting walls.

A second project arose from collaboration between Auvil Fruit Company (AFC), a well-known, innovative tree fruit operation in Washington, and Van Doren Sales, a highly-regarded packingline developer and manufacturer, also Washington-based. AFC has long used their custom designed and fabricated platforms for routine orchard operations, but has now added harvest to its capabilities. Workers still pick and place fruit into bags, but the bags are unloaded onto a sorting table where culls are hand-separated from packable fruit and dropped in the orchard. Bins are passed through the center of the machine. The platforms are optimized to function in AFC’s unique Tatura-type system.

The most recent project undertaken also results from a combination of an established ag equipment manufacturer and active tree fruit producers. Phil Brown Welding, Conklin MI, and two leading Michigan tree fruit producers, Mike Rasch and Chuck Dietrich, have formed a company called DBR Conveyor Concepts (DBR). Their prototype features pneumatic tubes transporting fruit after hand-picking into a dry decelerator and a dry bin filler.

Modular and adaptable to a range of orchard configurations, the DBR components can be arranged to function with existing orchard tractors and bin trailers, or on various orchard platforms. Currently, it lacks sorting capabilities. It has undergone intensive testing this season in Michigan and Pennsylvania and was integrated into the ongoing USDA-funded project “Comprehensive Automation of Specialty Crops.”

While none of these approaches is commercial yet, both Oxbo and DBR are aiming for the 2011 crop season with products that are distinctively different and developed in close collaboration with tree fruit producers. Both are well aware of the need for robust, cost-effective equipment and working hard to expand application of their products beyond fruiting wall apple orchards. AFC remains committed to its harvest-assist path.

Certainly these three efforts are not the solution to the ongoing challenge of recruiting and retaining a productive and reliable work force in orchards across the country, but their progress and commitment make next year even more exciting. Despite a few clouds, really good news is on the horizon and getting close to U.S. orchards.