Compac has tackled pandemic challenges to ensure a successful cherry season for customers in Turkey and Uzbekistan

Compac, part of the TOMRA Food family, with its distributor ICOEL and Turkish agent Sardas, were confronted with challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as they were preparing to ship and install three cherry grading and packing lines in Turkey and a fourth one in Uzbekistan.

Roberto Ricci, Compac Regional Director EMENA, commented: “The COVID-19 pandemic provided an unexpected level of challenge, with significant restrictions on the movement of people and materials. In spite of the situation, we delivered in full and on time! How did we do it? Through careful planning of the logistics with our partner ICOEL, and we leveraged our global supply chain and logistics capabilities.”

In mid-May, four lines installing turnkey, equipped with Compac’s InVision2 electronic grading platform, were up and running for the beginning of the cherry season at Perla Fruit, Karaali, Unifrutti in Turkey and at Uz-Segang in Uzbekistan.

Compac carefully analyzed the respective requirements of all four companies and developed tailored solutions for each of them. Lines with the InVision2 platform achieves accurate and consistent grading for shape, size, color and blemishes through a combination of powerful imaging using color and infrared technologies, controlled lighting and cherry rotation. A total of 16 lanes were installed at Perla Fruit, 10 lanes at Karaali and at Unifrutti and 6 lanes at Uz-Segang.

Mr Ricci explained that the travel restrictions and countries blocked due to Covid-19 have become a challenge not only for shipping the equipment, but also for the Compac team to reach the four locations. “We leveraged our remote service capabilities with resources located to cover all continents and time zones. These remote resources allowed us to provide support literally around the clock, 24/7, to the three separate technical teams that were on the ground working to install and commission the four lines.”

All four companies completed the season successfully and report superior results compared to other systems with respect to packaging quality and sorting efficiency.

Turkey, the largest producer of cherries with a share of just over 25% of the global market, has made the strategic choice to develop its export market and focused on sweet cherry varieties that are more in demand. Between 2005 and 2016 alone, sweet cherries production increased from 6 million to 21.5 million. Perla Fruit, established in 2019 by a family of pioneers who put the Turkish cherry industry on the map, successfully closed its first season by exporting over 4000 tons to the markets of Europe, the Far East and the Middle East. A family business Karaali, founded in 1992, has an annual export capacity of around 3,000 tons, most of which goes to the Russian market. Unifrutti, a renowned Italian global fruit exporter, established its base in Turkey in 1991 and began this season with operating a new sorting and packaging plant for cherries, processing 3,000 tons for the European market.

Uzbekistan is a rapidly developing market, which has already taken the 5th place in the world for the production of cherry. Recently the government has signed a protocol with China to market the cherries and has undertaken negotiations with South Korea to facilitate exports. Uz-Segang grows fruits, vegetables and legumes in fertile soils of the Fergana Valley. It exports mainly to the Chinese market, only 3.5 days away by truck, and to South Korea.

Compac is a member of the TOMRA Group, provides integrated post-harvest solutions and services to the global fresh produce industry using the world’s most advanced grading technology and operates centers of excellence, regional offices and manufacturing locations within the United States, Europe, South America, Asia, Africa and Australasia.

More information can be found on Compac’s website.

TOMRA has more than ~100,000 installations in over 80 markets worldwide. The Group provides technology-led solutions that enable the circular economy with advanced collection and sorting systems that optimize resource recovery and minimize waste in the food, recycling and mining industries.

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