MAX FRESH

A significant part of the fruit and vegetable production gets lost during the post-harvest process. Innovation stakeholders from the North-Western part of Europe are now joining forces to develop an affordable tool that could help farmers monitor the quality of their products in real-time. The new tool will contain a next-generation gas detector, which can measure eight different gasses released by the products. The  project, MAX FRESH,  strives towards introduction of the sensor for commercial use end 2023. 
 
The detector (ISS = interactive storage sensor)  will provide real-time information on gasses released during ripening (ethylene and CO2) , fermentation (ethanol, acetaldehyde, ethylacetate), damage (ethane) and rotting (methanol, acetone). Together, these gasses give very precise information about the state of the product.
A  light is sent through an atmosphere sample. Depending on the gasses in the sample, it will absorb a specific colour of the light beam. By measuring the light output , the exact gas mixture willl be  determined, up unitl one gas particle out of 10.000000 particles. The challenge in this project is to gain a "fingerprint" of different types of gasses.
 
The complex data from the detector will be transformed in one very simple signal, for example a green light if the quality of the product is still excellent, and otherwise an orange or red light. In this way, the farmer knows exactly when to sell the product or how to adjust the storage atmosphere. The monitoring system will be tested and optimised together with farmers and storage facilitators.  Initially, the system will be applied to the storage of apples, pears, blueberries and the potatoes, which represent a large part of agro-food sector in North-West Europe. Nevertheless, it can be used for other fresh products. The return on investment is estimated at two to three years for an average storage room. The durability of the system is expected to be 10 years. Therefore , the product will have a significant economic value for the agro-food sector.  Visit the public website here !

Low-cost, compact, sensitive multi-species trace gas sensor that monitors emitted gases from fresh agro products stored under (un)favorable conditions. Trace gases represent ripening, fermentation, damage and rotting of food. The sensor will give an early warning to growers and retailers, thereby avoiding undesirabel quality loss / downgrading of stored products.

LOW-COST SENSOR PROTOTYPE
The project aims for a gas-sensor that is able to detect eight chemical compounds simultaneously. Therefore, a new laser is required., with a broad spectrum and a very high intensity. Moreover, the light pathway and the detection method will be optimised. The goal is to make a very selective, but also an affordable detector system.
 
SELECTION OPTIMAL STORAGE CONDITIONS
Which gases are produced by which products ? And how do they represent the product quality ? This is essential information to be able to convert the sensor data into userful information about the quality of the products. The project will map the gas release in potatoes, apples, blueberries, and pears during multiple degradation processes.
 
SYSTEM INTEGRATION AND VALIDATION
In the end, the sensor will be connected to a computer-controlled monitoring system, producing easy-to-use information about the fruit quality. The growers will receive notifications describing the qualtiy as excellent, good or less good. On the basis of that information, they can decide whether they need to sell the product or adjust the storage atmosphere. The MAX FRESH will develop this complete monitoring system and decision-making-model by Oktober 2023.