Hectre has showcased its transformative mobile fruit sizing app, Spectre, for the first time in Europe at the prestigious Fruit Logistica trade show in Berlin, Germany.
The event provided an excellent opportunity for Hectre’s co-founder and CEO, Matty Blomfield, experienced team members, Elizabeth Hargrave and Omar Gomez, and new Europe Account Executive, Jessie Ntsangha, to network with European growers, packers, and industry experts.
If you’re unfamiliar with Fruit Logistica, it’s the leading trade fair for the global fruit and vegetable business. Every year, over 78,000 trade visitors from over 130 countries attend the event, which attracts more than 3,000 exhibitors. The trade fair provides a growth-focused platform for key players in the industry to showcase their products, services, and technologies, and to connect with customers, suppliers, and other industry professionals from around the world.
Spectre’s European debut at Fruit Logistica was a resounding success, with its innovative features and capabilities sparking a huge amount of interest from growers, packers, marketers, and other industry professionals looking for fast and accurate fruit size and color distribution data to support critical decision making in their orchards and packhouses.
“With the high level of interest shown in our solutions, we are keen to spend more time engaging with European growers, packers, and enterprise to learn more about the challenges they’re facing and how we can help address those challenges,” said Blomfield.
Using machine learning and computer vision algorithms, Spectre streamlines the data collection process by allowing users to capture fruit size measurements quickly and easily using their smartphones or tablets, making it a highly reliable and efficient tool for packhouses or for growers to use in the orchard.
Spectre’s game-changing technology also extends beyond the hand-held application. Hectre launched Spectre Top Down in 2022, which uses a customized mounted camera to capture huge sample sizes straight off the back of the truck as it arrives at receiving. Premiere Washington State fruit sales and marketing company Sage Fruit is one of many Hectre customers reaping the benefits of Spectre Top Down.
Nicole Gordy, Director of Business Analytics at Sage Fruit says Spectre tech delivers a massive increase in their size and color sampling where reliable data is crucial. “We can capture size data on more than 5,000 apples from just one truck pass as it pulls into receiving.” While another satisfied customer, Monson Fruit’s Jaritt Hays stated “With Spectre’s large sample sizes, we can pinpoint the optimal time to sell our fruit, minimize pack line stoppages, and improve sales projections.”
But Spectre wasn’t the only technology on display at the Hectre booth. Attendees were also impressed by Hectre’s comprehensive orchard management platform, which provides growers with real-time insights into their orchard’s performance. With this innovative solution, growers can make data-driven decisions to optimize yields, reduce waste, and improve profitability.
Paolo Rabbiosi, the manager of Fratelli Rabbiosi, an Italian orchard, and a long-time Hectre customer, also attended the event, providing valuable insights and guidance to the Hectre team on the European fruit growing industry. With the high level of interest that Hectre received for its award-winning technologies at Fruit Logistica, it likely won’t be long before Hectre is welcoming more European growers, packers, and enterprise to the Hectre family.
With Hectre entering the European market, Hectre’s leadership team is focused on maintaining the company’s reputation for excellence. “We’ve built our business on the foundation of exceptional customer service and user-friendly technologies,” explained Blomfield. “As we expand our reach, we remain committed to providing innovative solutions that help our customers succeed in a rapidly-changing industry.”
