Improving harvest efficiencies with picking platforms

30 March 2015 | Written by Craig Hornblow, AgFirst | Australian Fruitgrower article

Picking platforms can increase harvest efficiency by reducing ladder work and unnecessary movement, but their economics depend on how well the machine is used across the orchard and across the season. Craig Hornblow reports typical picking-efficiency gains of about 15–30 per cent in suitable systems.

The article explains that mechanisation converts flexible labour cost into fixed capital, making yield consistency, orchard scale and machine utilisation more important. It also discusses benefits beyond speed: reduced physical strain, a broader labour pool, faster training, easier supervision and the ability to use platforms for pruning, thinning and training.

Canopy design is critical. Simple narrow trees, even fruit distribution and varieties requiring fewer picks all improve platform performance. The article also notes practical constraints such as terrain, maintenance skills, downtime and the need to spread capital cost over enough bins and orchard tasks.