Dealing with tomatoes that have outgrown their vines might not seem like too much of a hardship, but they can cause unexpected headaches for growers who have to cope with split branches and potentially damaged fruits. 

ARaymond, a specialist in smart attachment solutions for greenhouse growers, believes it has found the answer for such difficulties with the introduction of TwinHook, an innovative support system that the company claims can prevent the damage before it happens.

According to ARaymond sales engineer Erikjan Hoornstra, the TwinHook supports branches heavy with fruit and avoids the risk of them breaking under the weight of growing tomatoes.

Developed in close cooperation with growers in the Netherlands, the product was on show at the recent Fruit Logistica 2016 trade fair in Berlin, Germany, which also coincided with ARaymond making its debut appearance at the event.

“There’s no other product like it,” claims Hoornstra.

“The competition doesn’t have a similar product – it’s a completely new innovation that can be used to hold tomato plants together.”

To date, Hoornstra says the product has received a great deal of interest from growers from Mexico and the U.S. to Europe, with ARaymond already having sold its first units.

“We have sold our first few million units, so it can already be seen in practice,” he says.

The TwinHook complements the company’s existing FlexTruss support for tomato plants, which Hoornstra claims reduces the risk of damage to plants, saves time and cuts down labour costs.

“The more flexible design of the FlexTruss helps reduce risk of breaking the branch, as it’s not necessary to bend the branch manually to install the truss support,” he says.

“This means the FlexTruss is much faster to install, saves time and reduces labour costs.”

Launched in 2014, Hoornstra says the smooth, rounded design of the product also helps reduce branch breakages.

“This is the fastest truss support out there,” he claims. “Although it is more expensive than the competition, it is very much in demand – we are completely sold out at the moment.”

Hoornstra says both TwinHook and FlexTruss are also available as part of ARaymond’s Bio range using compostible, biodegradable alternatives to plastic materials.

“There’s a lot of talk about bio products as more and more retailers are demanding that their suppliers use biodegradable materials in production,” he says.

“As a result, everything that we produce in plastic, we also offer in bio alternatives.”

Headline photo: www.shutterstock.com

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