Citrosol experiences growing interest in its product range

At Fruit Logistica 2022, CITROSOL seized the limelight bringing its products for avocado and organic crops, among others to the fore. Looking back over this year’s Fruit Logistica, Citrosol’s management believes that “as expected, the number of participants has been lower, but the fair itself has been quite active for Citrosol. We received many visitors to our stand and were able to attend to their needs better due to the fact that the influx of the public was lower”. It was pointed out by the company that, “it should be noted that this reduction has been mainly due to the dates on which the fair was held, coinciding with the start of the citrus campaign in the southern hemisphere countries and the start of Ramadan in the Arabic countries”. “Nevertheless, we consider our time in Berlin to have been very positive; we have been able to exhibit our innovations, arousing great interest, particularly our new range of coatings with extra added protection (the CIC ® formulation); the Plantseal® plant-based coatings for organic produce suitable for vegan consumption. Lines increasingly in demand within the sector. Our feeling is that it has been a good reboot for Fruit Logistica, making it easier for next year to reach the level of previous editions.” Regarding the activity of the Valencian company during the fair; the avocado displayed its dominance in the exhibition halls of the Berlin Messe where it was shown to be the main actor and the benchmark product for a global and emerging crop, both in production and in consumer demand. It was here that Citrosol shone forth its credentials as an innovative company capable of enabling the practicality of international avocado trade thanks to its post-harvest solutions, such as Citrocide® Avocado, Citrosol® A K Avocado and the Plantseal® Tropicals coatings, the latter being in the process of evaluation for ecological status. “Thanks to the Citrocide® Avocado System, a technology for the hygienic washing of avocados, and the plant-based coating, Plantseal® Tropicals, we have managed to double the commercial life of avocado, allowing exporters to reach evermore distant destinations”, explained Raúl Perelló, in charge of Citrosol International. Citrocide® Avocado is a system, unique within the market, that provides a guarantee of food safety, reduces surface contamination and minimizes the risk of cross-contamination. This reduces the risk of health alerts with attached public health consequences which in turn directly translate into economic losses. Raúl Perelló refers to it as follows: “Peduncular mold, which can appear on avocados during storage, transportation and commercial distribution of the fruit, is the source of many complaints. With the Citrocide® Avocado System, peduncular mold reduction rates of 100% are achieved after 25 days and 90% at 40 days. Similar, and in some cases even better, results than with the Prochloraz treatment, but with the advantage that Citrocide® Avocado is a solution that does not leave a residue and is certi?ed as organic (EU)”. Avocado coatingAnother of our developments presented was the plant-based Plantseal® Tropicals coating for avocado and also mango, in the process of being certified organic and totally suitable for vegan consumption, which controls weight loss excellently and improves the firmness of the avocado as it ripens and throughout its shelf life. This innovation manages to prolong the commercial life so that the consumer has more time to buy and enjoy the avocado. Plantseal® Tropicals offers a high degree of control over internal necrosis as a result of chilling injury. “With this coating we can control this type of discoloring by up to 84%, minimizing complaints upon arrival at destination and during distribution,” added Raúl Perelló. Plantseal® Tropicals was not the only avocado coating promoted in Berlin; there was also Citrosol® A K Palta for chilling injury control as well as for mitigation of weight loss. This waxing improves the firmness of the fruit without altering the color of the coated avocado when compared to one that is not. Biocare OrganicAvocado was the star product at Fruit Logistica, and organic the main trend. Within those realms, Citrosol presented the Biocare line of organic treatments, the Plantseal® range being a perfect paradigm. “Many participants of the fair had come to visit us to learn about these coatings due to the need that currently exists in the sector”, explained Inma Navarro, commercial technical director at Citrosol “there is Plantseal® with the lustre it provides and Plantseal® Shine free, which offers an almost imperceptible natural gloss to the fruit,”. This is a fundamental characteristic since there is an increasingly growing demand for fruit with a more ‘natural’ appearance. Take as an example, the lemon, essential in the kitchen, its rind for confectionery or whole slices for cocktails; if the skin has a very shiny wax, it may not be to the consumer’s liking and this leads to markets and consumers demanding fruit with a more ‘natural’ sheen. The laboratory at the warehouseFruit Logistica 2022 also served to attract new customers demanding a mini portable laboratory, such as the Easy Kit®, a global innovation presented recently that makes it possible to control post-harvest treatment processes simply and quickly, as well as the final quality of the treated fruit. “Many exporters who visited us at the fair told us that they do not have a specialized post-harvest laboratory that can provide them with a quick and precise service. However, their customers are increasingly demanding greater controls over fungicide treatments on the fruit”, underlined Juanjo Ferrandis, manager of Easy Kit®. It is a very useful tool for the exporting / trading company to obtain analytical results in situ at its own packing house in time to be able to make adjustments in the production process or decide the destination of the treated fruit. Easy Kit® analyzes fruit on which fungicides such as Imazalil, Pyrimethanil and Orthophenylphenol have been used. “Just as simply, Easy Kit® also serves to verify the absence of these fungicides in new markets that ask for ‘residue-free’ fruit or to control their absence in discharge waters for environmental reasons,” concluded Juanjo Ferrandis. Food safety and inocuousnessAnother current flow in the market tested at the German fair is that of fresh-cut fruit and vegetables, washed, cut and bagged. A trend that has continued to grow over the last decade and where Citrosol has a ‘unique’ tool, Citrocide® Fresh-Cut, as highlighted by Martín Mottura, a researcher at the Valencian company. “The effectiveness of Citrocide in eliminating microorganisms, harmful to people, and in avoiding cross-contamination in fresh cut and minimally processed produce washing is proven”, he noted, “it is a viable alternative to chlorinated disinfectants in fresh cut and minimally processed produce washing”. Here Citrosol is not only innovative in the product, but in the system itself. Thanks to its ability to monitor the process continuously, that is, to measure the concentration of Citrocide in real time, the concentration is always optimal for eliminating harmful microorganisms in the water. “And if there were any problem in the process, the system allows it to be detected and corrected”, added Mottura.