Aug 29, 2019: A group of experts from science and industry is currently visiting research sites in Southeast Asia as part of a networking and exploratory trip. The aim of the Traveling conference FRUTIC, initiated by the ATB, is to sustainably establish and expand cooperation with excellent partners in Malaysia, Thailand and Hong Kong in the field of post-harvest technologies for fresh plant products.
The eight-day conference trip will focus on the implementation of workshops in Malaysia and Thailand as well as the FRUTIC conference which will be held in the context of the ASIA FRUIT LOGISTICA trade fair in Hong Kong. There will also be excursions and cooperation talks with the partner institutions.
In addition to German experts, some 100 UPM scientists and other research institutions from Malaysia and neighbouring countries took part in the kick-off workshop at the University Putra in Kuala Lumpur Malaysia. The topics discussed at the workshop ranged from digitisation approaches for temporally and spatially resolved water balancing and determination of yield capacity in fruit growing, to automated harvesting and processing technologies, innovative packaging concepts for fresh products and technology transfer issues.
There is a great deal of interest in deepening research cooperation in the field of post-harvest fruit and vegetables. For more than ten years, UPM and ATB have cooperated in various research areas, including a lively exchange of (young) scientists in post-harvest technology and Precision Horticulture. Collaboration in the field of Precision Horticulture will be approached between the Field Labs for Precision Agriculture at UPM and ATB.
ATB-scientist Dr. Manuela Zude-Sasse appreciates the chance of an intense exchange of information to broaden the existing basis of cooperation: "We were taken to visit the facilities of the environmental biotechnology research group where they focus on four main themes: biocompost, biomaterial, bioenergy and biobased chemicals. The group is researching in core areas of oil palm biomass utilization, kitchen waste, landfill leachate and sago waste."
Next stop of the FRUTIC Travelling Conference on 30 August will be Bangkok, Thailand
The FRUTIC Travelling Conference receives financial support from the BMEL via the project executing agency BLE. The aim is to network with science and industry in the SO-Asian region in order to meet the major challenges regarding quality and loss reduction in the value chain of fruit and vegetables together with solutions.
Contact: Dr. Christiane von Haselberg
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