Peter Geurts, co-owner of FineField and the brains behind the technical design for the machine, tells. 

"It became increasingly difficult to find workers to harvest the berries. This was true before the corona crisis, but totally so now. The work is physically demanding and many foreign workers have gone home to be with their families during this time. In addition, the demand for blueberries is increasing enormously due to the healthy properties of the berries. We had to come up with a way to harvest all the blueberries anyway."  

3 know more than 1

And that's where Peter succeeded. By not only designing a smart machine, but also seeking cooperation with valuable partners. "Our company consists of 3 entrepreneurs. One of us has a construction workshop, the other has an engineering company and we work together with a berry grower. Precisely because of this cooperation, we know exactly how delicate the picking machine should be." 

"Without this collaboration, the berry machine could not have been created."

No bruised berries

FineField's project not only contributes to a sustainable and healthy society, but also to smarter processes. "There were already picking robots for blueberries, but you couldn't sell the berries as a fresh product with them. The berries were too badly damaged." 

"Our machine shakes the berries out of the bush and catches them in a special way. Without damaging them. The automatically harvested berries are thus suitable as a fresh product. In addition, you can harvest more without needing people. That is very efficient and a sustainable way of harvesting."

Exposure, knowledge and contacts

Peter is happy with the added value of LIOF. "LIOF thought along and challenged us to spar about different aspects of our business case. At the same time LIOF connected us to physical and digital networks. This gave us both extra exposure for our innovation and we gained valuable additional knowledge and contacts."

Just getting the teething problems out of the way

FineField tested the picking machine last summer at a select number of growers in Limburg and Germany. Now it's a matter of getting rid of the remaining teething problems so that the machine can be sold to a larger group of growers (in Europe and America) from next season onwards."Innovation is necessary for survival"

Look for each other!

Does FineField have any tips for other entrepreneurs? "Keep your eyes and ears open for new developments outside your company. Only then will you be ready for the future. Innovating is necessary to survive." And Peter can't stress it enough: "Work together. Don't do it alone. The berry machine is a great example of what you can achieve if you look out for each other."

More information about FineField: www.finefield.nl