ULTIMO by Interko reigns strong as one of the world’s foremost fruit ripening room for large volumes

The result of 50 years of continual innovation, Interko’s flagship ripening room ULTIMO is stated to remain the number one solution on the global market to evenly and efficiently ripen to perfection large volumes of bananas or other fruits, at minimal cost. Added to that, the ULTIMO room can be used for citrus de-greening at the source, or to ripen certain fruits at the source before transport to their end market.

“Since Interko developed the first modern pressurised banana ripening room in 1988, our highly-skilled engineering team has continued to advance and adapt our flagship ripening room to deliver the exceptional system that you see today in ULTIMO,” explains Interko’s Managing Director/Partner Chris Maat.

“ULTIMO can be built in a single, double or triple-tier format with heavy-duty steel racking to hold a maximum of 90 pallets of fruit, as well as various pallet sizes,” continues Maat. “This state-of-the-art room offers maximum efficiency to evenly ripen large batches of fruit within a tightly-stacked space. This is made possible thanks to the unique design of the room which enables an equal flow of air across a single or double row of pallets, aided by the effective use of side curtains.”

To reduce dehydration and product loss, an air cooler runs along the length of the room to maximise the cooling area, and to maintain a constant temperature. This cooler comes fitted with Interko’s game-changing REVERSO fan technology, launched in 2017.

“Our REVERSO fans produce a reversible air flow to ensure homogeneous (equal) ripening on both sides of the pallet for improved product quality,” comments Maat. “Additionally, REVERSO fans adapt their power output to the air flow in the room; producing only the necessary amount of power for an optimal air flow, thereby avoiding any surplus energy.”

ULTIMO rooms are used by large-scale fresh fruit ripeners across northern Europe and worldwide. For the biggest operators, multiple ULTIMO rooms are connected to a central supervisor where the ripening process, loading schedules and air quality are managed and monitored at all times.

Thanks to their high energy-efficiency rating, all of Interko’s ripening rooms (ULTIMO, AXESSO and OPTIMO) are designed to enable customers to reduce their operational costs, and to maximise profitability. Robust and reliable, these ripening rooms are built to last, easy to maintain and simple to repair.

Established in 1968, Interko is a pioneer of modern fresh fruit ripening technology. To this day, the Dutch company remains the world’s leading ripening solutions provider, having installed over 7,000 state-of-the-art ripening rooms globally. Every single room is custom-made to solve specific customer needs.

Interko will exhibit at Fruit Logistica in Berlin in Hall 1.2 on Stand D-12.

For more information visit https://interko.com/ripening-rooms/