Online shopping fruit and vegetables

Online is becoming a crucial part of fruit and vegetable supply

Responsible reporting

Supply chain specialist Sedex has launched Sedex Advance, a reporting tool it describes as “the next generation platform for ethical and sustainable sourcing”.

Sedex Advance is described as helping companies of any size and supply chain complexity to work quickly and effectively; organise and monitor their responsible-sourcing programmes via a simple dashboard; provide risk-assessment tools to help businesses be more proactive; track and demonstrate progress with real-time reporting; support growth via scaling to meet changing supply chains; and continuously evolve and provide tailored functionality. Sedex Advance replaces the company’s previous Sedex 2.0 platform.

2 Overcoming unwanted intrusions

ATP monitors could see a reduction in the number of rejected consignments of fresh produce that have been damaged by stowaways.

Techno Fresh Consultancy has been conducting trials and benchmarking an ATP system on fresh produce to identify pallets within a consignment that are clean and untouched, as well as those with light or heavy contamination.

According to Techno Fresh MD Richard Gaskin, the system is ideal for consignments that have light damage when stowaways have gained access to the trailer for a short while and been quickly removed. The Food Standards Agency used ATP monitors during the 2012 London Olympics.

3 Smart thinking

Fresh produce suppliers are moving closer to what is being dubbed ‘intelligent integration’ in their use of IT, according to Rubicon.

The company says intelligent integration combines a number of key initiatives to streamline the packing process by using technology either intelligently controlled, or supplied, by a Rubicon ERP system.

Rubicon adds that it is using the latest technology to facilitate an automated, paperless and voice-controlled warehouse and packhouse environment.The technology controls packing lines, automated storage areas and voice-integrated picking, allowing a ‘hands and eye’-free operation to improve accuracy and speed up processes. The devices can be trained to understand any accent or language.

4 DIY ERP

Irish fresh produce supplier Keelings isn’t just waiting for the IT companies to come up with new solutions – it is providing them itself. The firm initially set up Keelings Solutions to serve Keelings’ businesses, but now it is expanding its wings and looking to the wider industry.

The division offers tailored ERP software and services packages, whether via cloud or local client-based integration. It has a Business Edition for smaller firms and Enterprise Edition for larger corporations, and Keelings Solutions says one of its key points of difference is the fact that its software is fresh produce-specific rather than generalised.