Project
GreenDriedFruits aims to develop, test, and implement novel sustainable technologies that can contribute to increase the resilience and the sustainability of the durable commodity value chains. The proposal focuses on dried fruits (i.e., figs, dates, and currants) that represent main agricultural commodities in the Mediterranean basin area. They are highly appreciated by consumers both because of their sensory properties and nutritional characteristics and have a primary economic impact both in terms of local production and international trade.
GreenDriedFruits aims at providing sustainable solutions for post-harvest pest control in dried fruit commodities that can be efficiently and easily adopted by the firms in substitution to pesticide use. In fact, in addition to the well-known negative environmental impact, pesticide use also has important drawbacks that limit the economic performances of the firms operating in the chain (e.g., impossibility to access the organic market, high food losses, increased health risks) and decrease product quality.
Goals
- Overcome the main inefficiencies of the current pest management methods;
- Allow firms to adopt and applly TT in automated and highly controlled conditions to obtain optimal results;
- Can be extended to a variety of other durable commodities (including staple commodities). In a longer-term perspective this will represent a key line of resilience for firms due to the increased automation of the process, its sustainability, the reduction of food losses as well as of health risks;
- Allow firms to comply with EU policy strategies (especially SDG 12 and Farm to Fork Strategy), possibly opening new commercial channels, such as the key organic market.