Do you like getting chemical powders and granules in your eyes and mouth? Well the Venturi filler isn't for you then. This wonderfully simple system makes putting the correct amount of chemical granules/powder into your main filling tank almost painfully easy. With the turn of one handle, the Venturi system begins to suck the chemical from the bucket and places it into the main tank, ready for mixing. Unless you have a particular sadistic affinity to ingesting Captan, then the purchase of this is a no brainer, and at a mere €195 it's a steal too.

Want to see it in action? Buy one. Just kidding (sort of), we have one on a sprayer at our office for demonstration (until the sprayer is sold, anyway) if you want to come and view it.

Bardsley Farms, in one of their now many guises, have purchased a(nother) 3 Row sprayer, this time for Highland Court Farm at Bridge. Their orchards were crying out for a multi row sprayer as they were perfectly linear with decent headlands, allowing the Munkchof 3 Row sprayer to radically reduce the time and effort it takes to spray the farm. Speaking to growers, it is becoming increasingly important to speedily react to weather conditions and the conventional method of sprayer just didn't allow that to effectively happen. The Munckhof cuts spraying time nearly in half, allowing for rapid reaction to time sensitive issues such as scab, nipping the problem in the bud.

The sprayer is the new all singing, all dancing version of the conventional sprayer, debuting the new technologies in the UK including VARIMAS system, LED lights, cameras and hydraulically driven extra agitation. The VARIMAS system measures the wind speed and direction and cleverly adjusts the amount of air ejected from each side to push more against the the wind and less with it, for maximum efficiency but also saving quite considerable amounts of (expensive) chemical! LED lights and cameras on each bag now make spraying in low light conditions a doddle too, increasing potential spraying time further. 

All these additions have added further star quality to an already top notch machine, with extras such as a joystick control system (replacing the switchbox) to come later in 2019 and no doubt further bells and whistles too, it's well worth keeping an eye on both our product page and Munckhof's website too www.munckhof.org

Gaskains has become the latest top, top fruit company to purchase not one, but two Munckhof 3 row sprayers. Akin to most modern fruit growers, Gaskains have planted their fruit in linear post and wire formations over the past few years; ideal conditions the 3 row sprayer. Adding to their budding fleet of Munckhof one row sprayers, the 3 rows will take the majority of the work, with the smaller one rows doing the smaller, bittier jobs.

The Munckhof 3 rows have got smarter since their inception, now deploying the VARIMAS system (optional) that judges wind speed and direction and intelligently varies the intensity of spray on either side, based on those readings. Furthermore as other optional extras, it has new cameras and LED lights but also a joystick controller that replaces the older flick switches, making operation easier than ever.

For more information, a quotation or to order yours now, please contact office@kentfruitservices.com

BURG and F. W. Mansfield & Son continue their close affiliation with another installation of yet more packing lines at Nickle Farm. The recent revolution of the way Mansfields pack and grade their fruit has meant a dramatic increase in efficiency, contributed to by two major factors; BURG's machinery and Lee Port's leadership. All top fruit grading and packing is steadily coming under one roof, reducing unnecessary movements and inefficient labour. This simple yet radical idea has once more put Mansfields at the forefront of the fruit industry. 

Following on from two packing lines previously installed (2 BURG BFIs fed by a 3D wet infeed) the current project is another 3D robot servicing 3 lines; a further BFI flow wrap infeed, a dual wicket bagger line and a forced packing line. This spans all the disciplines of fruit packing, allowing for increased capacity but also more importantly, flexibility. During discussions about the project the key was future proofing - this diversity of packing options and their layout allow for development in the future, leading to increased automation and further efficiency savings.

Every detail of Lee's plans were attended to by Joan and his colleagues, ensuring all aspects were tailor made to make working on each line easier than ever before. 

For further information about BURG and the plethora of machinery they offer, please visit http://www.kentfruitservices.co.uk/burg-machinefabriek.html or http://www.burgmachinefabriek.nl/

Loddington Farm took delivery of a Pluk-O-Trak this summer to revolutionise the way they pick fruit. With the orchards perfectly suited for the harvesting machine (post and wire set up) the picking rate has dramatically increased, allowing for picking at the perfect time. James Smith opted for our junior version with 4 picking arms transporting the fruit to a bin filler, in combination with an empty bin trailer being towed behind. 

Compared to picking trains the Pluk-O-Trak dramatically reduces the picking cost per bin, increases storage efficiency due to less empty space in the bin and reduces tractor movements in the orchard. All these combined add up to big savings year on year. Initial figures suggest that picking costs are reduced by £5 per bin, and overall costs reduced by £11 due to the reasons highlighted above.

The machine isn't just a one trick pony, many of our clients use it all year round for pruning and thinning as well as harvesting, maximising the return on the initial investment. Our harvesting equipment stays on the machine throughout, negating any chance of removal damage. Furthermore the Pluk-O-Trak perfectly balances solidity with weight; easily negotiating the worst of winters, with its 4 wheel drive without turning your orchard into a potato field.

It's just under two weeks until the National Fruit Show at Detling showground kicks off again and we will be taking up our customary position at stand K9. Our partners in crime, BURG will be just next door at K10. The usual fan favourites of Gert Brouwer for GREEFA, with Vincent Sanders and Thijs Munckhof for Munckhof will be there. We also have a special new addition of Han Smits, one of the new owners of Munckhof making his first appearance, please give him a warm welcome!

We hope to see all the familiar faces and also hopefully some new ones too. Come by and enjoy a sandwich and tea whilst marvelling at our impressive range of machines on display.

​Until then, happy harvesting.

Winter is rapidly approaching and for those among you that haven't ordered their trees yet fear not, we still have some trees available for this year including:

Apples: 2 year well feathered knip trees on M9
Gala Galaxy
Gala Schniga
Braeburn

Cherries: 2 year well feathered knip trees on Gisela 5 & 6
Regina
Karina
Merchant
Kordia

We are delivering plenty of Gala Schnico trees this year, as well as Braeburn, being modelled by our glorious leader, Peter Kelly. 

Newmafruit have joined the increasing band of brothers that have installed an internal sensor system to evaluate the insides of fruit in a non destructive way. Affixed to the first 1.6 metres of their GREEFA Geosort the intelligent flavour analysis (iFA) system utilises witchcraft and wizardry to asses the internal condition of a fruit. It's actually a clever system of shining a light through the fruit and measuring the spectrum at the other end (each problem gives a specific measurement) and the computer learns problems for each customer's fruit, tailoring it's results. If (when) computers take over the world. I think we can point to this as an obvious sign of progression.

The iFA system removes the possibility of fruit being rejected by stores for problems that are invisible to the human eye and easily pays back the investment when a year of bad fruit hits.

The installation included a 2 day training trip which saw Monika and Rafal go to the GREEFA factory and have on site training about how to operate the new piece of kit. Furthermore GREEFA offer lifetime assistance with the iFA system, with each set of results you send them being made into an updated model for the duration of your possession of the iFA (something no other company offers). This outstanding service is just one example of the kind of care GREEFA takes of every customer. 

Newmafruit have more exciting news in the pipeline, which we will share in due course....watch this space! Until then....

We all hope the 2018 season has gone without a hitch and the early weather wasn't too unkind! You've worked your machines hard, they've done you proud and now it's time to reward them with a good service. We are available to come and show your machines some love, just give us a call now on 01227 765069 to book yourselves in and prepare for another successful 2019. 

Bardsley Farms have just taken delivery of their very first (and hopefully not their last!) 3 row sprayer at River Farm and it looks magnificent! Paul Hamlyn has been the architect of this masterful plan from start to finish and has ensured that everything is to the specifications required, as well as keeping a firm eye on safety; the machine including hydraulic brakes and a light system to ensure maximum control for road driving.

Whilst the Munckhof 3 Row looks like a daunting beast, the operation of it is much like any other spraying machine; after a short transition and learning period everything becomes second nature, the operator able to swing the boom arms in and out/up and down with ease.

The 3 Row sprayer will make the whole exercise much more efficient allowing spray operators time to spot potential problems within the orchards and being able to react to them much quicker. This reduces the likelihood of a real problem taking root in the precious orchards and with the tremendous capacity of the Munckhof, it makes solving the problem happen a lot faster too!

If you like the look of this and want to know more, drop us a line or pick up the phone and we will be happy to help find the right sprayer for you.