Dutch group Rijk Zwaan is pushing its unique lettuce featuring the Knox anti-browning trait over the coming month, through a series of open demonstration field days.
Taking place in Fijnaart, the Netherlands from 20 June onwards, the demonstrations will feature the first commercially available seeds utilising the Knox trait, namely Cos and Romaine varieties. Other types of lettuce are currently available for testing, the group noted, and could soon be made available on a commercial basis.
The first bags of lettuce featuring the Knox trait are currently on the shelves in Australia, with bags soon to be introduced to the UK market, Rijk Zwaan noted. “We are looking forward to seeing the results from the market,” the group said. “Stay tuned for more information on the market response to Knox.”
Knox ensures that lettuce leaves discolour less rapidly after cutting, extending shelf-life by about two days.
Ahead of Fruit Logistica in Berlin in February, Rijk Zwaan’s head of convenience Bauke van Lenteren said that 2016 would be a crucial 12 months for Knox as the group opened it up to potential markets. “
“We first revealed Knox at our Leafy Event in September but it’s now time for us to present this innovation to a wider audience,” she explained. “2016 is going to be a key year of testing and trials for the Knox varieties. It extends the shelf-life of a bag of pre-packed lettuce by around two days, which opens up new opportunities for the whole chain.
“We are very proud of this introduction”, added van Lenteren. “Not just due to the major benefits that Knox offers to the entire leafy vegetable chain right down to the consumer but also due to the way in which we were able to achieve this breakthrough together with our colleagues and partners.”
All Knox varieties will be on display during the Fijnaart demonstration days, as will Rijk Zwaan’s sandwich leaf range – a full range of lettuce varieties specifically suited to use in sandwiches including round frilly Batavia and Lolo leaves to fit on a bun, long narrow leaves with solid ribs for French bread, and firm and crunchy Cos leaves that stay firm when covered in a warm filling.
Connecting customers
Not content with produce innovation, Rijk Zwaan has also developed a piece of tech as part of its digital communications platform, Partner RZ. The company has launched the Growing Partner app which will enable crop advisors and growers to exchange knowledge with one another via their smartphones.
“Growing Partner is an exclusive service for Rijk Zwaan customers all over the world,” explains Dennis van der Kaaij, from the group’s marketing and business development sector. “Once connected, customers canuse the app to accessgrowing tips and read other users’ reactions. We’ve noticed that the blogs have been fulfilling a need since we started with them in 2012. The app will make it easy to use Growing Partner RZ in the greenhouse and out in the field too,so further improving our service to our partners.”
The app is seen as the latest step within Rijk Zwaan’s Partner RZ platform, following on from the company’s launch of the Demo Partner app last year.
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