News

New precision irrigation carriage reduces water and fertiliser consumption by 75%

A roller energy chain in a guidelite guide trough ensures safe guidance of the hoses and cables in the precision irrigation carriage. The aim of the precision irrigation carriage from Rathmakers Gartenbautechnik is to use water resources sensibly whilst protecting the groundwater at the same time. With the new automatic irrigation system, the water reaches exactly where it should: directly to the plants. For the safe and compact guidance of hoses and cables, the developers rely on an igus energy chain system consisting of roller chain and guide trough. Water shortage is a major problem worldwide, which is why solutions are needed, especially in agriculture, which bring water in a targeted manner to the plant. For this purpose, Rathmakers Gartenbautechnik has developed a precision irrigation carriage together with Landwirtschaftskammer NRW. Whereas conventional irrigation carriages with a continuous jet stream waste a lot of water, the precision watering carriage irrigates and fertilises in a stipulated way. The unique system is especially suitable for outdoor potted plant cultivation and ensures that water is delivered precisely into the middle of the plant’s growing pot. By using this new technology, savings of 50 to 75 per cent are possible in irrigation water, plant protection and fertiliser, depending on the pot size. This also reduces the nitrogen input into the groundwater. The precision irrigation carriage has a span of 40m and a travel of 208m. The cables and hoses for the water supply were pulled behind the carriages until now. A loop was created, which required about 2m of space between the carriage guide and the plants. A safe and space-saving hose with cable guidance was required. 343 sqm of more usable space The main advantage of the system: by guiding the hoses and cables, the usable area is increased by 343 square metres. It […]

Self-Watering soil makes farming viable everywhere

Scientists from UT Austin’s Cockrell School of Engineering have developed a new type of soil that can pull water from the air and distribute it to plants. As novel as it sounds, this soil could help expand the map of ‘farmable’ land around the globe to previously inhospitable places, and reduce water usage in agriculture at a time of growing droughts. According to associate professor Guihua Yu, the team’s unique atmospheric water irrigation system uses super-moisture-absorbent gels to capture water from the air. When the soil is heated to a certain temperature, the gels release the water, making it available to plants. Moreover, when the soil distributes water, some of it goes back into the air, increasing humidity and making it easier to continue the harvesting cycle. According to Yu, each gram of soil can extract approximately 3-4 grams of water. Depending on the crops, approximately 0.1 to 1 kilogram of the soil can provide enough water to irrigate about a square meter of farmland. The gels in the soil pull water out of the air during cooler, more humid periods at night. Solar heat during the day activates the water-containing gels to release their contents into soil. During a four-week experiment, the team found that its soil retained approximately 40% of the water quantity it started with. In contrast, sandy soil had only 20% of its water left after just one week. In another experiment, the team planted radishes in both types of soil. The radishes in the hydrogel soil all survived a 14-day period without any irrigation beyond an initial round to make sure the plants took hold. On the other hand, radishes in the sandy soil were irrigated several times during the first four days of the experiment – but none of them survived more than two days after […]

The power of traceability for food and medical manufacturers

– Reinaldo Silva, Head of Digital Manufacturing and Automation at Facteon As food and medical manufacturers face stringent regulations, an ability to trace the movement of raw materials and finished product both within your facility and beyond is demanded throughout industry by manufacturers of all sizes. A variety of forces have highlighted the need for food and medical manufacturers to gain greater traceability of both raw materials and finished products within their facility and beyond. Risk One: Increasingly Globalised Supply Chains As it becomes more cost-effective and simpler to source raw materials from suppliers across the globe, manufacturers are relying on increasingly globalised supply chains. While this brings a range of benefits, such as proximity to raw materials, cost competitiveness and improved quality of raw materials, there are significant risks as the supply chain becomes increasingly complex. As a result, traceability requirements expand significantly. Simplistic supply chain approaches that focus on “one step back and one step forward” traceability become increasingly complicated and impractical when manufacturers are drawing on a globalised supply chain. Risk Two: Product Recalls Tyson Foods famously recalled 39,000 pounds of frozen chicken patties which were potentially contaminated with foreign matter in mid-2019. From business interruption and eroded profit margins to long-term damage to your brand, a product recall has the potential to harm consumers and cost manufacturers dearly. Research has also found that a mere 21% of food recalls across USA, UK and Ireland were detected by the manufacturer. In fact, regulatory bodies discovered 68% during routine or spot testing. This highlights the potential competitive advantage that can be unlocked by manufacturers taking a proactive approach to both raw material and product traceability. Medical device manufacturers are also at risk of product recalls. Research has found that a significant challenge for medical manufacturers in the event of a product recall is tracing each […]

ClearTech® set to deliver massive water savings for dairy farming

The ClearTech effluent treatment system at Lincoln University Dairy Farm (LUDF) has saved over 600,000 litres of freshwater in its first full month of operation. The quantity of freshwater saved equates to the average daily water use of about 3,000 people, or the amount of water that an individual person would use in eight years. With steeply-rising farmer demand for ClearTech, the new effluent treatment technology will potentially save billions of litres of freshwater a year if used across the New Zealand dairy industry. LUDF Farm Manager Peter Hancox says the impact of the ClearTech system on the farm’s operations has been a revelation. “Our ClearTech plant has been fully operational since the start of our milking season, and already the amount of freshwater we’ve saved is remarkable. We’re saving at least 50% of the water used to wash the yard. “If we continue along this trend, and we fully expect to, then over the whole 10-month season we’ll achieve a total saving of 6,000,000 litres of freshwater.” Hancox says the costs of set-up and ongoing maintenance are relatively modest, and far outweighed by the benefits that will accrue to farms and the wider community. And as the ClearTech system works away in the background, its benefits are delivered with no extra effort on behalf of the farmer. “It’s a win/win for farmers and the communities they’re part of, as every litre of wastewater recycled is a litre of freshwater saved.” The breakthrough technology, developed by Lincoln University Soil Science Professors Keith Cameron and Hong Di, in conjunction with commercial partner Ravensdown, won the Science & Research Award at the inaugural Primary Industries Awards in July 2019, and the South Island Agricultural Fieldays Agri-Innovation Award, as well as a Highly Commended at the 2019 National Fieldays Innovation Awards. The ClearTech […]

E-Nose accurately detects if meat is fresh or spoiled

An NTU Singapore-led team of scientists have developed a new AI-powered electronic nose (e-nose) that can accurately measure the freshness of meat. Led by NTU professor Chen Xiaodong, the team – which includes scientists Jiangnan University, China, and Monash University, Australia – believes their artificial olfactory system could help reduce food wastage by confirming to consumers whether the purchased meat is fit for consumption, much more accurately than a ‘Best Before’ label can. The e-nose comprises of two elements: a colored ‘barcode’ that reacts with gases produced by decaying meat; and a barcode ‘reader’ in the form of a smartphone app that uses AI to interpret the combination of colors on the barcode. According to Xiaodong, the e-nose can be easily integrated into packaging materials – like the underside of the PVC film that the meat is packaged in – and yields results within 30 seconds without the bulky wiring typically used for electrical signal collection. The e-nose’s non-destructive, automated and real-time monitoring capability can also be used to recognise the types of gases that other types of perishable food emit as they become less fresh, providing a broadly applicable new platform for food quality control. When tested on commercially packaged chicken, fish and beef meat samples that were left to age, the team found that their e-nose’s ‘deep convolutional neural network’ AI algorithm predicted the freshness of the meats with a 98.5% accuracy. In comparison, the prediction accuracy of a commonly used algorithm to measure the response of sensors like the barcode used in this e-nose stood at 61.7%. Just like how gases produced by decaying meat bind to receptors in the mammalian nose, the 20 bars in the e-nose’s barcode act as its receptors. Each bar is made of chitosan embedded on a cellulose derivative and loaded with a different […]

New funding recognises rural sector’s strong focus on sustainability

The Government’s investment of more than $6 million into farmer-led projects to improve water health in Canterbury and Otago reinforces the important sustainability work already undertaken by the rural sector says Canterbury Employers’ Chamber of Commerce Chief Executive Leeann Watson. Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor has announced that the funding will be spent on helping farmers improve the health of rivers, wetlands, and habitat biodiversity in the two regions, as well as improving long-term land management practices. Four farmer-led catchment group Jobs for Nature projects have been allocated between $176,000 and $2.3m over the next three years, including $362,000 for a North Otago sustainable land management riparian project, $2.2m for the Tinaku project in Ellesmere and $176,000 for the Pomahaka wetland restoration project. An additional $2.9m will go towards helping about 300 Hurunui farmers work towards land and water improvements through the application of farm environment planning and sustainable land management practices. Ms Watson says the funding for the environmental improvement work is recognition of the significant work undertaken by the rural sector to date. “The majority of farmers are very focused on improving and protecting their land for future generations, and many have been early adopters of environment management plans for the last seven or eight years, so it is good to see this recognised through this funding support. “Environmental stewardship is also an important area in terms of securing market access for food and fibre, so this funding will play a role in helping to boost our agriculture exports – a key economic driver for the region, which was particularly evident through COVID.” Ms Watson says the Government’s prioritisation of sustainability issues sends a strong signal that this issue has not been overlooked in the COVID environment. “Preserving the health of rivers, wetlands, and habitat biodiversity has always been […]

David-Surveyor-Alliance-Group-NZ-Food-Man-website-1

Energy-saving technology a first for sheep and beef industry

Alliance Group is investing in a range of initiatives to improve its environmental footprint including a heat pump to reduce diesel use. The new energy-saving high temperature heat pump at the co-operative’s Nelson plant, which will help cut carbon emissions, recycles waste heat from the plant’s refrigeration systems. A first for the New Zealand sheep and beef processing industry, the heat pump has been installed in collaboration with the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority (EECA). Meanwhile, Alliance is also examining fuel options for its other plants. It is currently looking at upgrading the existing boiler at its Mataura plant in Southland to provide a number of benefits including improvements to emissions and efficiency, and considering further opportunities for other sites in the future. “Alliance has a comprehensive sustainability programme in place to improve our impact on the environment and we have the financial strength to invest in these improvements,” says Alliance Group chief executive David Surveyor. “We recognise we have to play our part and improve our environmental footprint. Our customers and consumers have high expectations for how the co-operative manages the natural environment and they also expect transparency and ethical food production. “As a 100 per cent farmer-owned co-operative, we are committed to meeting high standards of environmental practices and we are constantly looking ahead to make sure our practices allow us to be in business for the long term so we can continue to support our farmers and rural communities. “It is fantastic that the high temperature heat pump makes sound environmental sense and good business sense too.” Alliance’s seven processing plants, which employ almost 5,000 people at peak season, have annual performance targets for fuel and electricity use, which make up the majority of the co-operative’s annual emissions (107,877 tonnes of CO2 equivalent). “We regularly monitor our […]

Launch of New Zealand Food Network set to bolster support for thousands of Kiwis living with food insecurity

With many New Zealanders facing increased financial hardship as a result of Covid-19, national levels of food insecurity have risen sharply in recent months – and rose further when the wage subsidy scheme concluded in September. Now, a new venture is set to provide much-needed additional support to the hundreds of community organisations around the country that are working overtime to meet this growing need. The New Zealand Food Network (NZFN) will enable food hubs – such as food rescue organisations, iwi and charities – to expand their positive impact in the communities they serve, and beyond, by transforming supply chain processes to create better efficiency and synergy. The NZFN will act as a centralised distribution hub, collecting and safely storing bulk food donations at its Auckland-based warehouse, with food then able to be requested on an as-needed basis (and at no cost) by food hubs around the country, without compromising their existing supply channels. Donations will include not only surplus and rescued food, which would otherwise go to landfill – but also bulk donations of saleable product from a community of generous donor partners. Providing a comprehensive and streamlined solution to connect supply and demand, the NZFN also promises to eliminate the issue faced by many community organisations of a lack of on-site storage infrastructure, which can often see them having to turn away large food donations. The amount of food made available to any single organisation will depend on supply, the levels of deprivation or food insecurity in the communities they serve, coupled with their storage capacity. New Zealand Food Network founder, Deborah Manning, says the launch marks the culmination of over two years of planning and preparation – with efforts expedited from the start of lockdown, to help meet the new wave of demand caused by the […]

Launch of the New Zealand Agritech Story

New Zealand has a new story to tell, one that highlights the nation’s ingenuity, development of cutting-edge technology, and care for its people and place. The New Zealand Agritech Story provides a compelling way of promoting New Zealand’s agricultural technology internationally, to build awareness and preference for New Zealand solutions and ultimately help more New Zealand agritech businesses succeed on the world stage. The NZ Agritech Story includes a comprehensive suite of free promotional materials that highlight New Zealand’s leading edge in the sector. Peter Wren-Hilton, the executive director of Agritech New Zealand, said the story would make a key difference for export companies. “The sector is highly competitive, with companies from around the world all promoting their products. The New Zealand Agritech Story will provide us with a distinctive voice, a way to engage with customers and communities and explain to them why Kiwi companies are different, both in the way we have developed our innovative solutions and the way we operate as partners. “Agritech has a significant value for New Zealand’s export economy – it currently contributes about $1.5 billion to our export receipts – and campaigns like this will support its growth. “We’re excited to share the Story for the first time internationally this week as part of New Zealand’s presence at Ireland’s National Ploughing Championship, where we’ll also be showcasing some cutting edge Storytelling with the Agritech Mixed Reality experience.” The development of the agritech story fits within the framework of the New Zealand Story and was informed by the gathering of comprehensive market insights, to better understand current perceptions of New Zealand agritech – areas of strength, weakness or possible misconceptions. The Story is designed to help respond to these issues. Central to the New Zealand Story is the Māori concept of Kaitiakitanga (guardianship, for […]

ABB Ability Liquid Routing Library launched for food and beverage production

Process automation technology provides customers with optimal routing and ‘cleaning-in-place’ to increase efficiency and reduce costs. ABB has launched ABB Ability Liquid Routing Library which is a control engineering inventory for food and beverage manufacturers and those in other liquid related industries, including tank farms, pharmaceuticals and chemical resin plants. The new digital application draws on ABB Ability System 800xA, the most powerful Distributed Control System (DCS) automation platform in the market and will support routing and cleaning in place (CIP) functionalities needed for liquid-led production. It can be used wherever products are transported, stored or processed in tanks and lines and is particularly relevant to dairy, brewing, sugar, mills and edible oil application programming. Ready-made objects including libraries, typicals, and templates for product routing, with recipe-based CIP, track and trace, preventive plant maintenance, Excel-based bulk data tools are made available for customers through the library. Functionalities include alarm handling, alarm propagation between different units, queue handling for online production changes, control and supervision of process objects, interlocks and transfer of product and equipment settings like product codes, unit names and unit states. ABB Ability Liquid Routing Library will support food and beverage customers in their digitalisation journey. Customers are driving innovation in process automation, digitalising their production sites for greater speed, consistency and quality and Liquid Routing Library is an important piece of this jigsaw. Having a complete library for product routing, with ready-made objects and templates will allow users greater visibility and understanding of what is happening at each stage of the process. We know that routing and cleaning in place support are vitally important in food and beverage plants. This is built-in and at-any-stage ABB support from experts or additional documentation is available. Operators will be able to diagnose issues quicker than before and have solutions ready, […]

«‹ 18 19 20 21 ›»

News Ticker

News