**Enschede**: OneThird introduces a digital quality control platform leveraging AI and NIR technology to streamline fresh produce assessments, reduce food waste by up to 25%, and provide real-time data insights, transforming existing QC practices that are often outdated and inefficient.
A new digital quality control platform developed by OneThird is aimed at transforming the conventional quality control (QC) processes within the fresh produce supply chain, which have been described as time-consuming, labour-intensive, and prone to inaccuracy. The traditional methods of assessing produce quality often rely heavily on manual visual inspections and destructive testing methods, which can result in significant food waste and lost resources.
Current QC practices, such as Brix tests for measuring sugars in fruit, involve manual techniques that are vulnerable to human error, leading to potentially flawed quality assessments. For instance, the time taken for dry matter tests on avocados can stretch up to 12 hours, while shelf-life tests can take several days. This inefficiency not only increases operational costs but also contributes to the wastage of produce that could otherwise be saved.
OneThird’s platform seeks to address these pain points by leveraging artificial intelligence and non-destructive Near-Infrared (NIR) scanner technology to provide real-time insights into multiple quality parameters, thereby streamlining the QC process. For quality inspectors, the platform promises to alleviate the burden of traditional methods by delivering faster, data-driven feedback to commercial teams, facilitating better decision-making regarding distribution and reducing the risk of food waste.
“Expanding our technology to fulfil all quality control requirements addresses a key pain point for our customers,” said Henrike Langbroek, CEO of OneThird. “It makes the job of quality inspectors much easier and provides faster feedback to the commercial teams to direct the right products to the right place, reducing produce waste.”
By providing real-time data insights through its scanning app, OneThird not only aims to enhance the accuracy of assessments but also enables stakeholders across the fresh produce supply chain—growers, distributors, and retailers—to make more informed decisions. This shift has the potential to decrease food waste by up to 25% by optimising best-before dates and improving logistics.
“The industry has long relied on destructive and subjective Brix testing of berries and very laborious dry matter testing of avocados,” explained Marco Snikkers, founder of OneThird. “Seeing there is a faster way is often eye-opening. Access to real-time data ensures growers and distributors are confident they are delivering the right quality to their customers, along with significant cost and time savings.”
As the sector grapples with the challenge of food loss—estimated at one-third of all food produced worldwide, equating to a $1 trillion annual dilemma—OneThird’s solutions promise to not only reduce waste but also lower associated CO2 emissions and water usage. Founded in 2019 and headquartered in Enschede, The Netherlands, the company has garnered support from impact-focused investors, as it seeks to overhaul ageing systems with innovative, data-driven approaches.
By moving beyond traditional key performance indicators (KPIs) and dashboards, OneThird is setting a precedent in how supplier relationships within the fresh produce market could be measured and managed, highlighting the potential for operational analytics and real-time data to redefine the landscape of supply chain management.
Source: Noah Wire Services
