Author: Hithaishi CB

Zespri ZAG Innovation Fund launches second year with sustainable future mission As the world’s largest kiwifruit marketer, Zespri, which accounts for one-third of the industry’s global volume, reaffirms its commitment to the Zespri Innovation Fund, which accelerates sustainable innovation to meet growing demands in the global market. In the wake of ZAG’s launch in November 2023, Zespri is now seeking to rally innovators and pioneers to strengthen climate resilience across every food system and advance productivity and carbon-neutral practices for kiwifruit. As part of the industry’s focus on climate resilience, ZAG is expected to include solutions to help grow better…

Centralizing Data for Smarter Operations + Predictable Yields for Smarter Sales and Operations Source.ag, the provider of AI solutions for vegetable growers, has released three new product tiers, making access to high-quality data and AI more accessible and affordable for growers worldwide. These new offerings are designed to help growers unlock significant growth, scale and become more profitable by integrating AI-driven solutions into daily greenhouse operations. Source.ag believes AI is not here to replace growers, but to empower them by providing tools that can enhance decision-making and operational efficiency. By simplifying data collection across the entire growing operation and seamlessly…

“Robotic farmers”, with Robots-as-a-Service (RaaS) model leverages AI robotics for reliable farming and greater efficiency Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST ) has developed an automated robotic system designed to automate date palm harvesting. The artificial intelligence-powered robotics to automate key date farming processes, such as harvesting, pollination and tree maintenance, which will yield more nutritious dates in larger yields.   KAUST Assistant Professor Shinkyu Park is leading research that uses Robots-as-a-Service (RaaS) model that can allow smaller farmers to benefit from the technology without the burden of purchasing the robots outright. Field trials are scheduled to begin…

An investment of more than $1 billion over four years has been made by the government to build a strong biosecurity system. The government of Australia will invest $6.4 million over three years in the University of Melbourne to continue collaborative biosecurity research that is vital to the nation’s agricultural, fisheries, and forestry industries. Over the next three years, the University of Melbourne will host the Centre of Excellence for Biosecurity Risk Analysis (CEBRA) program, which strengthens the nation’s defences against increasing biosecurity threats. The Government will invest around $2 million annually in CEBRA to benefit trade, agriculture, the…

Blockchain-powered SmartTrace platform is designed to integrate with EU TRACES system, supporting EUDR due diligence for operators Golden Agri-Resources (GAR), a Singapore-headquartered palm oil company, has launched limited customer trials for its SmartTrace due diligence platform, as part of a broader programme to support compliance with the incoming European Union Regulation on Deforestation-free Products (EUDR), set to take effect on 30 December 2025. SmartTrace was piloted by Verborg Group in Farmsum, the Netherlands, which operates a state-of-the-art tropical oil refinery. A strategic partnership was established in early 2024 between GAR and Verborg Group for the supply of high-quality, traceable and deforestation-free tropical…

A novel application simulates and optimizes the in-field operation of autonomous and semi-autonomous machines An agricultural application powered by quantum computing marks one of the world’s first customer-facing products powered by quantum computing. It comes at a time when OEMs, research institutions, policy makers, agricultural departments, environment departments and farm managers seek novel ways to increase efficiencies in agricultural operations. Application built with Verge Ag and supported by Canada’s DIGITAL Global Innovation Cluster simulates and optimizes in-field operations of autonomous and semi-autonomous machines at scale. Robot routing in complex environments is a hard problem that cannot be solved efficiently on…

The first plant-responsive dynamic led lighting solution to monitor plant growth and productivity to adjust lighting in real time  Sollum Technologies and Leaficient are pioneering a breakthrough technology that redefines how LED lighting adapts to plant growth. Traditional lighting strategies rely on Daily Light Integral (DLI) as the primary metric for optimizing plant growth, based on the premise that plants absorb and use light with the same efficiency throughout the day and at all growth stages. However, recent research has shown that plant productivity can change significantly depending on a myriad of factors relating to the environment, resources provided and internal biological…

A innovative circular economy project Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) signed a Record of Discussions (RD) with the Government of Egypt in Cairo, as part of the Science and Technology Research Partnership to convert agricultural wastes into plastic products. The innovative Sustainable Development project is themed “The Project for Utilization of Agricultural Wastes for Plastic Alternative Productions to Establish a Circular Economy”. A circular economy project has been signed between the governments of Japan and Egypt to utilize agricultural wastes for plastic alternative production. The key players int he project would be “Japan University of Science and Technology” and “The…

Theme “Driving Innovation in Agri-food Systems for Shared Prosperity,” aimed to strengthen food security in the Asia-Pacific region by enhancing agri-food policies and systems Korea’s Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (MAFRA) held the first meeting of the APEC 2025 Policy Partnership on Food Security (PPFS) in the city of Gyeongju from 4 to 6 March 2025. The Republic of Korea, which has assumed the role of the chair of the APEC for the year 2025, and hosted senior officials’ meetings (SOM). The APEC PPFS summit was a platform that brought together governments, the private sector, and academia to…

South Africa is considered one of the top global exporters of table grapes, ranking among the top five exporters worldwide The Republic of South Africa has gained access to the Philippine market for the export of fresh table grapes, says Agriculture Minister John Steenhuisen as one of the major drivers of economic growth in South Africa (SA). The market was opened on 26 February 2025, which means that producers can begin exporting table grapes to the Philippines. Negotiations for this market started on 20 January 2015 and took about 10 years. South Africa is considered one of the top global…