International Fresh Produce Association Names Winners of Fresh Field Catalyst Program; Vonnie Estes Details
NEWARK, DE & WASHINGTON, DC - Opportunities abound in the fresh produce industry, and the International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA) ensures that they are made available to all operators. The Fresh Field Catalyst program is just one of its efforts, and the association recently announced the 12 winners.
“The Fresh Field Catalyst program is a super highway of development, exposing companies to contacts and industry lessons that could take years in a typical development cycle,” said IFPA Vice President of AgFood Tech Innovation, Vonnie Estes. “One of the main reasons the winning companies were chosen was that they had a viable product that is ready to be iterated for our specific market. We congratulate all of our winners; we’re looking forward to beginning this experience with them during Immersion Week!”
The companies named will have the chance to take part in an immersion week May 9–13, where they will be introduced to industry leaders, tour farms and facilities, and experience a crash course in all things produce.
The winning companies represent software, hardware, biotech, robotics, and more. According to a press release, this group is meant not only to learn from the industry experts they will meet, but also from each other.
The winners include:
- Provision - Calgary, Canada
- Routeique - Calgary, Canada
- Nexus Robotics - Saint-Bruno-de-Montarville, Canada
- Ten Carbon Chemistry Pty Ltd - Melbourne, Australia
- Morphix Technologies - Virginia Beach, United States
- Netled - Prikkala, Finland
- Clarifruit - Rishon Le’zion, Israel
- DiMuto - Singapore
- The Yield Technology Solutions Pty Ltd - Sydney, Australia
- Vitiport - Bratislava, Slovakia
- SoundAg - Emeryville, United States
- CarbonSpaceTech - Dublin, Ireland
The winners will also receive feedback on their products and solutions, fast-tracking their understanding of regulatory framework impacting produce and floral. All winners will receive exhibit space at the Global Produce & Floral Show as well.
“I’m especially excited to see these companies learn over the next several months throughout biweekly webinars and mentorship program and be able to arrive at the Big Show armed with experience and industry knowledge,” said Estes. “The Global Produce & Floral Show will allow our winners to connect with the industry and begin to make an immediate impact. We are grateful for all the participants who are contributing their time as mentors and member companies inviting our winners into their facilities. This is the true value of the program for our winners—learning, engaging, and iterating with our industry without barriers.”
We tip our hats to all of these innovative winners!
