Want to keep up with the latest news for growers? Check back every Thursday for a quick recap of recent happenings in the fruit and vegetable industry. – Industry News
Dramm MistTime Software Update
Dramm has announced an upgrade to their MistTime misting controller. The new update offers different duration timing and new languages for programming. The updated duration programming accomodates durations of up to 60 minutes and Dramm has also added Spanish and French languages to the controller. The MistTime can be programmed in a choice of English, Dutch, Spanish and French.
Cooper-Atkins Releases EnviroTrak
Cooper-Atkins has released its new wireless monitoring solution, EnviroTrak, designed for food processing and industrial applications. The EnviroTrak hardware is used to monitor spaces and equipment that includes refrigerators, freezers, holding tanks and fillers, to protect stored goods, food products and other items sensitive to spoilage. The software provides users with a customizable interface and provides alert notifications including escalations that require acknowledgement and documentation of corrective actions. The EnviroTrak system provides real-time data as well as historical input that helps verify equipment malfunctions and inconsistencies. It is available in 900 MHz or 802.11 Wi-Fi bandwidths (but can exist as a hybrid system, utilized when both bandwidths are operating).
Yara West Sacramento Newest Addition
Yara’s West Sacramento Terminal was welcomed as the newest Yara North America facility in the U.S. While continually operational since Yara purchased the West Sacramento facility from Agrium in December 2015, this event acknowledged the transition of the terminal to a fully integrated Yara site. Immediately after acquiring the facility, Yara converted the former UAN production plant into an import terminal for UAN and urea, which it receives from the U.S. and overseas. Most recent improvements include completely reskinning the 29,000 MT urea warehouse, utilizing energy-efficient translucent panels to allow natural light to enter. The dock is currently being redesigned to improve safety and efficiencies during dry vessel discharge operations.
Wilger COMBO-JET UR Series
Wilger introduced a new dual-chamber drift reduction spray tip series. The UR spray tip series maintains an even spray pattern while producing large droplets to bring spray drift to low levels for drift sensitive chemicals. Some new formulations of Dicamba chemicals have chemical labels requiring very tight control of any driftable fines. UR series tip-caps are compatible with Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) spray systems for greater application flexibility.
International Congress on Controlled Environment Agriculture (ICCEA) Announces Next Event
The Foundation for the Development of Controlled Environment Agriculture (FDCEA) announced will host the International Congress on Controlled Environment Agriculture (ICCEA) in Panama City, Panama in May 2017. The ICCEA 2017 is an event where attendees will have the opportunity to learn from experts in the applied fields of science, agriculture, horticulture, lighting, robotics and ag engineering. The FDCEA seeks to make CEA (whether greenhouse, vertical farm, or other) the answer to the future of agriculture with a primary focus on the creation of sustainable and profitable agriculture businesses. The theme of ICCEA 2017 is “Using Science and the Market to Build a Successful Controlled Environment Agriculture Business”.