SPECIAL SESSION #04

Konni Biegert

Kompetenzzentrum Obstbau Bodensee, Germany

• Konni.Biegert@kob-bavendorf.de

Pramod Mahajan

Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy, Germany

• PMahajan@atb-potsdam.de

Advances in postharvest, close-range, and mobile sensing technologies, combined with modelling approaches, are transforming how fruit and vegetable quality is measured, predicted, and managed along the horticultural value chain. This special session brings together researchers and practitioners working with handheld devices, in-situ and embedded sensors, and postharvest monitoring systems applied from harvest to storage and distribution. The session focuses on measurement-driven quality assessment, emphasizing how sensor signals are interpreted through mechanistic, empirical, and data-driven models to support harvest decisions, storage management, and loss reduction. The session also addresses sensor-model integration, validation, and digital twin approaches for real-time decision support and intervention.

Contributions are invited on, but not limited to, the following themes:

• Postharvest and close-range sensor systems for monitoring storage and transport conditions in fruit and vegetable supply chains,
• Handheld, mobile, embedded, and package-level sensing technologies for non-destructive quality assessment during storage and distribution,
• Sensor calibration, validation, robustness, and uncertainty analysis for reliable postharvest measurements,
• Sensor-based quality indicators and control strategies for maturity, ripeness, stress, and postharvest disorder management,
• Postharvest modelling approaches, including mechanistic, empirical, and time-series models informed by sensor data,
• Digital twins and AI/ML integration for quality prediction, real-time decision support, and intervention.

Konni Biegert is the group leader of the plant physiology and technology group at the Kompetenzzentrum Obstbau Bodensee located in the second largest apple growing region in Germany. She pursued her PhD in the department of horticulture at the Hochschule Geisenheim University focusing on the prediction of internal browning of apples based on the application of sensors and modeling. She is working in international and national applied research projects. Her work focusses on the integration of new technologies in horticulture production and implements interfaces not only of systems, but also with companies and players in decision support systems.

Pramod Mahajan is a Senior Scientist and Group Leader at the Leibniz Institute for Agricultural Engineering and Bioeconomy (ATB) in Potsdam, Germany. His research focuses on postharvest technology, particularly controlled and modified atmosphere research for fresh produce. Dr. Mahajan earned his Ph.D. in Post Harvest and Food Engineering from the IIT Kharagpur (India), in 2002. He has held academic and research positions globally, including at University College Cork in Ireland. Over the years, Dr. Mahajan has significantly contributed to the field of postharvest technology. At ATB, Dr. Mahajan leads the Packaging & Storage Working Group, focusing on sustainable packaging solutions, mathematical modelling and sensor development for monitoring fresh produce.