New AI-driven tools help reduce India’s ₹29,500 crore fruit waste problem, starting with apple and pear storage and quality tracking
Tropical Agrosystem (India) Ltd. has partnered with global post-harvest tech leader AgroFresh Solutions Inc. to bring two breakthrough innovations Strella and Rubens to India’s fruit value chain. These technologies are designed to cut post-harvest wastage and improve fruit quality tracking from farm to storage.
India loses more than 7.36 million tonnes of fruits annually, largely due to over-ripening, inconsistent maturity, and lack of scientific quality control in storage. Strella and Rubens aim to directly solve these challenges.
This is a breakthrough moment for Indian agriculture,” said Mr. V.K. Jhaver, Founder, Tropical Agro. With these tools, farmers and packhouses can reduce losses, improve returns, and deliver better quality to consumers.
What Do Strella and Rubens Do?
- Strella is a CA storage monitor that tracks ethylene levels, O₂/CO₂ balance, temperature, and humidity in real-time. It alerts operators if fruit begins to ripen early or conditions shift out of range.
- Rubens is a handheld scanner that uses light-based technology to assess fruit maturity on the tree checking sugar, firmness, and starch levels instantly, without cutting the fruit.
Both systems are integrated into AgroFresh’s FreshCloud™ platform, which gives farmers and logistics players full visibility across the value chain.
Apple and Pear Sectors First, More to Follow
Tropical Agro will first deploy these solutions for apple and pear growers, with plans to expand to other fruits and vegetables. The systems will be available on a subscription model, making them affordable to growers, packers, and traders.
Rubens and Strella are not just devices, they are decision-making tools, added K. Venkatasubramanian, GM – Post-Harvest Business, Tropical Agro. From orchard to cold storage, they bring accountability and precision.
Backed by Proven Global Expertise
Tropical Agro has been a key player in India’s crop solutions space, impacting over 8 crore farmers, with 7 factories, 3 R&D hubs, and a presence across 20,000+ retailers. AgroFresh, a US-based leader, developed SmartFresh™, the world’s most widely adopted post-harvest solution for apples.
The combined rollout signals a new phase in India’s agri-value chain modernization, where data, traceability, and quality control are as important as yield.
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