Project Grant 20213941035934

IT IS WIDELY APPRECIATED THAT A VARIETY OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES WILL BE REQUIRED TO FEED AN ESTIMATED POPULATION OF 10 BILLION PEOPLE BY 2050 WITH ENVIRONMENTALLY SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION. IT IS ALSO ESTIMATED THAT ABOUT ONE THIRD (IN WEIGHT) OF THE WORLD'S FOOD IS LOST OR WASTED ANNUALLY. THE SIMPLEST SOLUTIONS ARE TO MAKE BETTER USE OF EXISTING FOOD PRODUCTION. WE BELIEVE THAT ACCESS TO BETTER INFORMATION WILL IMPROVE AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES POST-HARVEST AND PLAY AN ESSENTIAL ROLE IN MAINTAINING THE PRODUCTIVE CAPACITY OF THE PLANET. BETTER INFORMATION BEGINS WITH BETTER SENSORS. SENSIT VENTURES, INC. (SENSIT) IS COMMERCIALIZING A NOVEL CHEMICAL SENSOR PLATFORM THAT COMBINES LOW-COST AND HIGH PERFORMANCE FEATURES REQUIRED FOR PRECISION AGRICULTURE AND POST-HARVEST APPLICATIONS. OUR BATTERY-POWERED MINIATURE CHEMICAL SENSOR PLATFORM IS A MICROCHIP THE SIZE OF A COIN. FOR INCREASED SENSITIVITY AND RESOLUTION, THE SENSOR CAN BE OPTIONALLY COUPLED TO A SECOND CUSTOM MICROPRECONCENTRATOR. TRACE GASES THAT PROVIDE AN EARLY WARNING FOR THE PRESENCE OF POST-HARVEST ROT ARE ADSORBED ONTO A MATRIX USING A MICROPUMP AND THEN DELIVERED TO THE SENSOR BY HEATING.POST-HARVEST DISEASES CAUSE MAJOR ECONOMIC LOSSES. THERE IS STRONG COMMERCIAL INTEREST IN MONITORING FOR DISEASE ESPECIALLY DURING TUBER STORAGE AS EVIDENCED BY PREMIUM CONTRACTS THAT GROWERS ARE PAID FOR LATER DELIVERY DATES IN THE PROCESSED MARKET. THIS TARGET MARKET APPLICATION IS BOTH HIGHLY FEASIBLE AND VALUABLE AND WILL OPEN THE TECHNOLOGY TO OTHER AGRICULTURAL USES INCLUDING A WIDE VARIETY OF ADDITIONAL CROPS. OPTIMIZING THE TIMING OF DELIVERY OF PERISHABLE PRODUCTS WITH PRECISION MANAGEMENT WILL BETTER TARGET AND LIMIT THE COSTS OF REMEDIAL INPUTS TO MAINTAIN QUALITY, MINIMIZE LOSS AND IMPROVE SUSTAINABILITY. SUCCESS WITH THIS POST-HARVEST USE CASE WILL OPEN THE PATHWAY FOR ADDITIONAL APPLICATIONS TO MONITOR PRODUCTION AGRICULTURE, FIRST IN CONTROLLED ENVIRONMENTS.