With the COVID-19 pandemic, consumers have begun to cook at home more often. For this reason, sales of fresh vegetables have increased significantly, but many packaged potato growers have actually started to push their limits. Due to the overload, some of them even have to refuse orders. Other market players have free capacities, but they cannot quickly master new directions for themselves. These two very different situations are based on one reason: insufficient technical capacity. Without highly efficient and flexible technologies, it is increasingly difficult for packaged potato growers to attract and retain large customers.
High efficiency implies maximum throughput with minimum waste, and technology flexibility means the ability to quickly reconfigure a production line to work with a new variety of potatoes or adjust it in accordance with changed product specifications. Both operations are especially important at this time, when consumer behavior has changed due to the "corona crisis" and the demand for fresh potatoes has increased significantly. Many packaged potato growers are faced with an unprecedented challenge: how to meet the ever-increasing technical requirements for their products with growing supply volumes? Moreover, they are forced to respond quickly to these changes; however, the line change itself must be carried out accurately and quickly.
Perhaps one of the clearest illustrations of this need for flexibility comes from retail chain specials. While such promotions serve as an important tool in the struggle between retailers, they have profound implications for the packaging industry. Favorable offers quickly replace each other: on Friday afternoon, a producer of packaged potatoes may be asked to find and deliver a certain variety of potatoes by the beginning of next week: with tubers of a certain size and quality, without visible spots, packaged in bags with a specific weight. These many complex requirements can only be met if modern sorting machines.
The need for productivity is more obvious - in the interest of profitability, productivity is a daily necessity. Packaged potato growers need to keep their lines at maximum capacity, but they also have to take care to get the most out of their production. Whether this condition is actually being met can be understood at the initial stage by analyzing two of the most important KPIs: the number of bags per minute and the percentage of packed products. However, these numbers are too often disappointing. The percentage of packaged products is usually 60% and rarely exceeds 80%.
Actual losses in the range of 20 to 40% of incoming raw materials would surprise productivity professionals from other industries. Moreover, such inefficiency is more expensive than it seems. As shown by a profile study conducted in Canada in 2017 by the organization Ontario Produce Marketing Association together with the company EarthFresh Foods and consultants from VCM International, an increase in the volume of packaged products by 29% will increase the production profitability by 74%. This information confirms that this topic is worth spending at least a little time.
The findings highlight the importance of reusing rejected products. Packing 1st grade potatoes in clear bags can seem like a lucrative business as the product leaves at a premium price. However, profitability often depends on a less obvious condition - the ability to sort out lower quality raw materials on the line and sell them as grade 2 potatoes, in other words, to get the maximum benefit from all incoming raw materials. This means that sorting machines must accurately and consistently recognize the degree of product quality. Only modern equipment.
Optical sorting machines are more commonly used to ensure food safety and consistent quality, but they are well positioned to optimize line performance and quickly adapt to changing customer requirements. Such pluses are always will help packaging companies grow successfully even if consumer demand for fresh potatoes declines after the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.
About Us TOMRA Food
Company TOMRA Food is engaged in the development and manufacture of sensor sorting equipment and integrated post-harvest technology for the food industry. Our solutions are based on the world's most advanced quality control, sorting, cleaning and process analysis technologies. More than 8000 of our machines are installed in different countries in the factories for the production, packaging and processing of food: fruits, nuts, vegetables, potatoes, grains and seeds, dried fruits, meat and seafood. The mission of the company is to provide customers with smart and practical technological solutions that increase their investment efficiency, increase productivity and ensure food safety. TOMRA Food has its own innovation centers, regional offices and production sites in the USA, Europe, South America, Asia, Africa, Australia.
TOMRA Food Included in the group of companies TOMRAfounded in 1972. The pioneering activity of the company began with the design, production and sale of vending machines for the collection of used beverage containers. To date TOMRA offers high-tech solutions that contribute to the development of a circular economy, which includes the use of advanced collection and sorting systems. These solutions ensure that resource use is recovered and waste is minimized in the food, mining and recycling industries.
At the moment, about 100 technological solutions TOMRA used by customers in more than 80 markets. In 2019, the company's total revenue was approximately NOK 9,3 billion. The group employs approximately 4500 international employees and is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange (OSE: TOM). Additional information about the company TOMRA can be found on the site www.tomra.com
As advertising