Sunriver Citrus is avoiding light blemish issues and improving throughput with TOMRA sorting technology.
Image provided by TOMRA
Long-standing citrus producer and exporter Sunriver Citrus is supporting its growth and maintaining quality standards with a new set of sorting solutions, according to sorter supplier TOMRA Food.
Operating since 1937, the South Africa-based Sunriver Citrus farms, harvests, and packages all its fruit, including clementines, lemons, Valencia oranges, and navel oranges. The company operates in farms across South Africa’s Sundays River Valley, in Kirkwood, Sunland, and Addo. It currently processes around 84,000 tons of product across three packhouses annually and sells its products both domestically and in export markets including North America, Europe, Asia, and Southern Africa.
Sorting technology to support growth
In response to fast growth over the past seven years and a forecasted upward trajectory ahead, Sunriver has turned to TOMRA’s sorting solutions to maintain quality and automate processes.
Sunriver has installed TOMRA 5S Advanced sorting systems in each of its three packhouses over the past seven years.Image provided by TOMRA“We had a lot of growth, and we needed sorters that deliver consistent grading to supply a perfect product,” says Theunis Bester, production manager at Sunriver Citrus. “Our vision is that in years to come there will be a high demand for citrus, but we at Sunriver want to be leaders in supplying good quality.”
Sunriver introduced its first new TOMRA 5S Advanced sorter in 2018. Impressed by the system’s performance, the company has since replaced sorters in its other two packhouses. It added a second TOMRA 5S Advanced in 2023, and a third system equipped with a new Dynamic Lane Balancer in 2024.
Says Bester, “We used to have issues with light blemish sorting before we installed the TOMRA sorter, now we don’t battle it anymore. We are packing better quality fruit because of the consistent good grading, and this good quality helped build our brand in the markets.”
How the TOMRA systems improve accuracy, throughput, and quality
Sunriver worked with Masgcor, TOMRA’s partner in South Africa, in installing the system on the lines in its three packhouses.
“Each packhouse has a Masgcor citrus processing and packing line where the TOMRA sorters form the main electronic sorting platform in a commit-to-pack layout,” says Gerhard Verster, general manager at Masgcor.
The system builds on the Compac Multi-Lane Sorter to deliver what TOMRA says is unrivaled accuracy and gentleness in fruit handling. Its software includes programs for element mixing, exact packout optimization, and throughput control for improved efficiency across the line. As a result, Sunriver has resolved its light blemish issues and achieved a 10% increase in daily packaging volume.
“The TOMRA 5S Advanced stands out for its reliability and accuracy,” says Verster. “It can handle superior volumes and delivers consistent superior quality to consumers.”
The TOMRA sorters help Sunriver to maintain quality standards as it exports to international markets.Image provided by TOMRAThe sorters’ ability to optimize packout is vital to Sunriver’s ability to provide for international markets, as Bester explains, “We have the right quality in the cartons for the right markets.”
Priding itself on innovation, Sunriver claims the TOMRA 5S Advanced with a Dynamic Lane Balancer is the first system of its kind to be installed in South Africa.
“The first reason for installing it was to address space limitations in our new packhouse, and to push the volumes through without having bottlenecks at the sorter by ensuring even spreads on the lanes,” says Bester.
The Dynamic Lane Balancer helps Sunriver achieve under 5% difference in cup fill between lanes.Image provided by TOMRAThe Dynamic Lane Balancer automatically adjusts the flow of fruit on the sorter, ensuring equal distribution across each lane. It uses data from its interface and sizer software to make automatic adjustments to the product flow.
The result is a “less than 5% difference in cup fill between different lanes, which means more effective and superior throughputs,” explains Verster.
The system not only optimizes cup filling but helps to improve throughput as well.
“We have a more even spread on sizer lanes, and this enables us to push more volumes,” says Bester. “We achieve 10% more volume on packing per day, and the sorter can run slower because of the good spread on the lanes.”
After recognizing the performance improvements afforded by the Dynamic Lane Balancer, Sunriver plans to install the system in its other two packhouses.
Overall, the company reports it’s satisfied with its sorting upgrades. Says Bester, “TOMRA has certainly increased our sorting efficiency. The sorters have had no mechanical problems and reduced a lot of downtime and sorting labor—and with the performance they deliver, we need almost no manual sorting. TOMRA has increased our returns based on the good quality grading, and there is a demand for our Sunriver brand across the world.”
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Sunriver has installed TOMRA 5S Advanced sorting systems in each of its three packhouses over the past seven years.Image provided by TOMRA
