Peru grapes

Hazel Technologies has announced the launch of the first ever virtual Grape Quality Summit, a two hour event held to be held on Friday 9 October.

According to the USDA-funded technology company, which delivers new solutions for fresh produce to extend shelf-life, increase sales and fight food waste, the summit will feature keynote speakers from across the grape industry ahead of the 2020/21 Southern Hemisphere grape harvest.

Speakers will include Dr Juan Pablo Zoffoli, professor of postharvest physiology and technology at Facultad de Agronomía e Ingeniería Forestal, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile; Patricio Mendoza, national quality manager for Oppy, and Mario Cervantes, senior business development manager at Hazel Technologies.

The keynote speeches will highlight the latest research on fresh table grape postharvest quality, including maintaining stem quality, preventing stem dehydration, and ensuring optimum quality during long-distance ocean freight transit.

“Due to the ongoing global Covid-19 pandemic, innovation in the table grape category regarding postharvest management is needed now more than ever before,” Zoffoli outlined. “I look forward to sharing the findings of our research with esteemed colleagues.”

“As a leading grower, marketer and distributor of fresh produce from around the world, Oppy has placed the utmost priority on embracing new technology to provide the highest quality, premium table grapes to retailers and consumers,” commented Mendoza, North America quality manager at Oppy, “Sharing knowledge within the industry on the latest research and development will help us collectively grow the grape category together.”

“Hazel Tech has dedicated extensive research efforts to understand the most urgent postharvest management problems in the fresh table grape category and deliver cutting-edge solutions,' added Cervantes. 'We are excited to share our findings with our industry partners at the Grape Quality Summit.'