Fruit growers see improved yield forecasts using AI tech

Artificial intelligence is helping commercial fruit growers reduce labour costs and food waste by more accurately predicting when fruit is ready to be harvested.

Cameras mounted to farm machinery are being used to film crops growing and new technology is then able to forecast when it is likely to be ready to pick.

This allows growers to plan required staffing levels more precisely and also ensure that crops are not over-ripe.

See also: NFU calls for support to protect farms from extreme weather

GreenView AI, a product developed by agricultural technology company Bitwise Agronomy, captures video footage of roughly 3% of a crop during field operations and uploads this information to a dashboard to generate expected yield data.

Fiona Turner, chief executive at Bitwise Agronomy, said: “Relying on grower instinct alone is not without its problems.

“Using this method, an average 10-ha farm could waste 55t of fruit per year from supermarket rejection alone.

“GreenView AI can improve forecast accuracy to 90% or more.”

The artificial intelligence (AI) technology analysed more than 2bn blueberries, 36m strawberries, and 34m raspberries in 2025.

West Sussex soft fruit grower the Summer Berry Company recently installed the software to help monitor crop development and aid picking requirements.

Liviu Palade, production manager at the Summer Berry Company, said: “With new varieties, you need to be able to adapt and innovate, so we decided to try Greenview AI to get an accurate forecast, which is important from a commercial perspective.

 “Not every season is the same, and particularly in the early season, a grower knows better but Greenview AI can analyse a lot of data from big areas, and so far, the yield predictions gathered have been great.”