Ripening expert Interko cements global leadership with Increasingly integrated service

Over the last 12 months Interko, one of the world’s leading and longest-serving fresh fruit ripening room provider, has completed its range of systems to suit all ripening applications, introduced a dedicated after-sales service department, established a support office in Asia, and significantly increased the manufacturing capacity and efficiency of its factory to keep up with demand.

Headquartered in the Netherlands, the designer, manufacturer and installer offers a unique proposition; having one of the most advanced ripening technology on the market, combined with over 50 years of industry experience in the post-harvest handling and ripening of fruit.

In September 2019, the team at Interko completed a new banana distribution centre for a client in Gran Canaria; installing four state-of-the-art Ultimo ripening rooms (each holding 16 pallets of bananas over two tiers), and training staff in the art of banana ripening.

“This is why Interko is so unique on the global marketplace,” explains Managing Director/Partner Chris Maat. “Since pioneering the industry’s first banana ripening room in the 1990s, Interko remains the only independent manufacturer of ripening equipment. Our international team has the knowledge to guide our customers to ripen any fruit to perfection, plus the engineering expertise to tailor our three core ripening rooms (Ultimo, Axesso and Optimo) to individual volume requirements and logistical configurations. Interko offers the complete package for stress-free ripening.”

Through this customer service-orientated approach, Interko can add value for any retailer, importer, distributor, wholesaler or food processor seeking to maximise their product quality and increase their profitability; whether ripening fruit at the source or at the destination.

Sold globally in over 50 countries, Interko’s portfolio of ripening rooms are cleverly designed to suit any operator, large or small. All rooms come fitted with revolutionary Reverso fans whose reversible air flow ensures homogenous ripening throughout pallets of fruit. Interko’s smart technologies, meanwhile, consume no more energy than necessary, meaning very low daily running costs.

Ultimo, the classic bulk volume ripening room, can hold up to 90 pallets of fruit; Axesso allows users the flexibility to interchange between ripening smaller loads of fruits; and Optimo is a turn-key solution that can adapt to ripen varying volumes of fruit from 8 up to 24 pallets. These sophisticated solutions can ripen a broad range of fruits including: bananas, avocados, mangoes, papayas, pears, citrus (de-greening), apricots, peaches, kiwifruit and tomatoes.

“Every day 4 million boxes of fruit are ripened in Interko rooms worldwide,” points out Maat. “Interko has manufactured over 6,000 ripening rooms and counting – the earliest of which are still in operation today. Built to last, our ripening rooms stand out for being cost-effective, energy-efficient, high quality and low-maintenance.”

Interko will be exhibiting at Fruit Logistica 2020 in Hall 1.2 on Stand D-12.

For more information about Interko's ripening products, visit www.interko.com/products