Quality demands in terms of calibration, freshness, availability, and taste have increased considerably in recent years. Meanwhile, the general conditions in the fruit sector have become rather more difficult with regard to pandemics, globalization, and climate change. With a sophisticated and holistic software system, the Swiss start-up aims to support players along the supply chain in their daily quality management, says founder Daria Reisch and consultant Andreas Allenspach (Bardini & Verde, formerly of Coop) in an interview.
The company found its origins when Ukrainian-born Daria Reisch wanted to help producers from her home country with quality management. "I then found that there was no suitable technology to ensure the quality of the goods, while the problem of food waste was becoming visibly more concise due to increasing markdowns. I wanted to change that."
Andreas Allenspach, strategic advisor to Agrinorm, and company founder and CEO Daria Reisch.
Sourcing the right goods in the right place
Based on this approach, Reisch founded Agrinorm AG in 2019. With the help of artificial intelligence (AI), users have access to all quality results, comments from customers and partners, and other relevant information in one overall view. According to Reisch, "Quality management runs along the entire supply chain, which means it's not just about ultimately delivering the appropriate quality, but also about procuring the right goods at the right place. Specifically, it's not so much about quality control, but about identifying problems early on and preventing them accordingly." The company wants to actively contribute to this change in thinking, which in turn distinguishes AGrinorm from conventional systems, according to Reisch.
One of the first users is Special Fruit, a recognized fruit importer based in Belgium. CEO Bert Barmans is very satisfied with the initial results of the ERP software: "If quality problems are only discovered in the warehouse, it is often already too late to remedy them. Therefore, we strive to strengthen the cooperation with our suppliers at origin so that, if possible, only goods that meet our customers' quality requirements are loaded." The implementation of Agrinorm is expected to accelerate this efficiency improvement along the supply chain accordingly.
360-degree view of the QM issue
In addition, Agrinorm has been able to bring on board Andreas Allenspach, an industry expert with years of experience in Germany and abroad. As a strategic consultant, he supports Agrinorm with his industry knowledge in the further roll-out of the QM platform. Allenspach: "I am firmly convinced of the application potential and future success of this system, as Agrinorm offers a holistic 360-degree view of the quality issue. From the user's perspective, Agrinorm ultimately creates a helpful basis for decision-making, which is simply due to the transparent data procurement and presentation."
Reisch also points to the inexhaustible application potential of AI. "Whether it's about precipitation at the source or extended transit times: Artificial intelligence ultimately helps to identify and mediate external factors that influence the quality of the goods quite a few weeks in advance. We are continuously developing these functions further together with researchers, experts, and reference customers."
Successful presence at the world's leading trade show
As a relatively young company, marketing and the associated customer acquisition is definitely particularly important. At the last Fruit Logistica in April, Agrinorm was initially represented in the start-up hall, and according to Reisch, the response to this trade fair presence was tremendous. "We found that the challenges in quality management are felt everywhere, which is why the demand for corresponding software solutions is huge. Accordingly, we are initially focusing on the entire industry, whether large enterprises or medium-sized companies."
For more information:
Daria Reisch
Agrinorm AG
Universitätstrasse 47
8006 Zürich
Tel: +41 78 66 888 18
info@agrinorm.ai
www.agrinorm.com
Bert Barmans
Special Fruit NV
Tel: +32 3 317 06 67
www.specialfruit.com/en/