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Doug Bragg Enterprises is largely responsible for the mechanization of the wild blueberry industry with the development of a commercial harvester and flail mowers specifically suited to handle rough field conditions.

Their long-standing research partnership with the Faculty of Agriculture and specifically, Dr. Travis Esau has led to innovations that can be applied across the industry.

“Any innovation in the industry ultimately increases safety while reducing our carbon footprint,” explained Dr. Travis Esau in the Department of Engineering on the Agricultural Campus.”  “Increased field efficiency and more productive equipment also results in lower cost for higher quality blueberries for consumers.”  

This innovative technology is directly transferable to cranberry producers and advancements with machinery and sensor technology can be transferred to other cropping systems as well.

Recent improvements have demonstrated almost a 15-per cent increase in berry-picking efficiency while also achieving a 30 per cent increase in field efficiency or acres covered per hour. Current work is focused on harvester automation to further increase the performance of the machines and be less reliant on operator skill.

“I truly enjoy the novel research and development projects in collaboration with Doug Bragg Enterprises,” said Dr. Esau.  “Advancements in harvesting research technologies have led to the development of the NS Wild Blueberry Harvester Efficiency Program, which is being delivered under the Canadian Agricultural Partnership with the federal government. The new research advancements also help to maintain fruit quality during the critical harvest season.”

Wild blueberries are an economically important crop native to northeastern North America. Dalhousie University, Faculty of Agriculture is an innovative institution with an enviable record of providing high quality education and research in support of the wild blueberry sector.

Farm input and other costs to produce wild blueberries continues to increase, while farmers have faced record low blueberry prices in 2016 and 2017 in addition to a major yield limiting frost event in 2018. The cost-price squeeze has prompted growers to look for innovative methods to remain financially viable and sustainable. To ensure profitable farm operations, farmers require advancements in machinery to increase harvestable yields and field efficiencies.

Maintaining industry sustainability, building food security, reducing the overall carbon footprint of the producer, training of high qualitied personal and teaching students to solve real world problems are all outcomes of this research partnership.

“Areas of precision agriculture, machine systems, automation and engineering are of personal interest to me,” said Dr. Esau.  “I believe they are crucially important for the wild blueberry industry to remain globally competitive and I am proud to be part of the solution.”