Award-winning innovations for the fruit trade
Two juries, ten nominees, clear impetus for the fruit and vegetable industry
And the winner is ... this sentence has not yet been uttered. But the stage is set. The red carpet has long been rolled out – not for celebrities, but for products and technologies that convince consumers and transform the way value is created. The spotlight is on innovations with the potential to transform the global fruit trade in the long term.
For twenty years, the FRUIT LOGISTICA Innovation Award (FLIA) has been a reliable guide for the industry. Two independent expert juries have selected groundbreaking innovations from numerous submissions, which will be presented in dedicated exhibition areas during FRUIT LOGISTICA. Trade visitors can vote for their favourites on the first two days of the trade fair.
At FLIA, it's the trade visitors to FRUIT LOGISTICA who decide which innovations will be awarded the title of 'Innovation of the Year'. (Copyright: Messe Berlin)
The FLIA is awarded in two categories: The Fresh Produce category sees new varieties of fruit and vegetables compete against each other, while the FLIA Technology category honours the technical processes and service providers that are making the fruit trade more efficient, sustainable, and future-proof. The awards ceremony will take place on Friday 6 February 2026 at 1 pm in the foyer between Halls 1.1 and 2.1.
Two juries, clear competence profiles
The FLIA Fresh Produce jury comprises proven experts from the wholesale and retail sectors, as well as the consulting industry. The jury's focus is on taste, quality, consumer value and marketability. Nominees for the FLIA Technology Award are selected by an interdisciplinary jury of experts from science, consultancy and industry. The criteria evaluated are degree of innovation, practicality, efficiency, and sustainability potential.
The nominees for the FLIA Fresh Produce 2026
BOOMBITES™ Red Berry Grapes are the result of a collaboration between British company BLOOM FRESH (Hall 8.2, Stand A-80) and some of the world's leading table grape producers. Developing this new fruit variety took more than ten years, and it not only tastes great, but also contains polyphenols, which are known for their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
To ensure that people with allergies do not have to go without apples, the German company ZIN – Züchtungsinitiative Niederelbe (Hall 20, stands B21 and A22) has developed POMPUR. It is the world's first apple brand to be certified by the European Centre for Allergy Research Foundation (ECARF). As well as being of remarkable quality, it tastes excellent.
The POPITS™ snack cucumber is a collaboration between Israeli company Harmoniz LTD and Canadian company Mastronardi Produce (Hall 1.2, stand D-45). Measuring four to five centimetres in length, it is 1° Brix sweeter than conventional cucumbers and is particularly crisp and perfectly uniform. This new variety promises producers high yields and minimal losses.
Sapori's Finest Selection from Wim Peters Kwekerijen (Hall 1.2, Stand C-51) in the Netherlands stands out thanks to its unique flavours and extraordinary colours. This is a particularly fine selection of mini cherry tomatoes, distinguished by both their flavours and their colours. The 1.5-kilogram selection includes ivory, black and green fruits.
Tribelli Seedless, from Dutch exhibitor Enza Zaden Beheer B.V. (Hall 1.2, Stand B-30), are a healthy snack to enjoy between meals. These sweet, pointed mini peppers are full of flavour, crunchy and seedless, and require no further preparation. This high-quality fruit is cultivated by dedicated partners across Europe.
The nominees for FLIA Technology 2026
AURA SC: insect control with a difference. The Slovenian Trapview Group (Hall 3.1, C-12) has developed a fully automatic pest monitoring and forecasting solution. Using UV light attraction and an AI-controlled self-cleaning mechanism, it enables continuous, real-time monitoring of multiple pest species. The collected data is converted into precise forecasts, which can be accessed via the Trapview app. This reduces personnel costs and the use of insecticides.
Compack's circular cellulose packaging is produced using mushroom waste (Hall 27, A-50). The Belgian company manufactures plastic-free boxes from the material on which the mushrooms grew. The boxes are free of harmful substances, compostable, recyclable and PPWR-compliant. This solution uses less paper than conventional fibre packaging.
The High-Speed Grafter from TTA-ISO in the Netherlands (Hall 3.1, Stand A-61) enables precise cuts above the cotyledons, setting a new standard for automatic grafting. Thanks to modern image processing, AI and a carousel system, the scion and rootstock are aligned perfectly every time, ensuring a seamless, efficient and hygienic process.
Precision and performance are the L50 DRONE's (Hall 3.1, C-21, ABZ Innovation, Hungary) key selling points. Europe's first lidar-based agricultural spraying drone has a 50-litre capacity and works with great accuracy and precision. It boasts 30 per cent longer flight times and can cover up to 24 hectares per hour.
The Solar Solution for light-loving crops from the Swiss company Voltiris (Hall 3.1, Stand A-10a) was selected by the jury for its beneficial effects on greenhouse crops. Solar filter modules promote vigorous plant growth and high yields. At the same time, light is converted into renewable electricity.
Award with a lasting impact
Fermata's victory in the FLIA Technology 2025 competition highlights the strategic importance of FLIA. Croptimus™ is a SaaS solution that uses AI and computer vision to detect pests in greenhouses at an early stage, providing producers with a sound basis for decision-making.
“The Fruit Logistica Innovation Award had a significant impact on Fermata’s scale-up,” explains Dr Valeria Kogan, CEO of Fermata. ‘For many growers, an innovation award serves as meaningful validation of the technology, and we clearly felt its influence on potential customers - from the Netherlands to Canada. The substantial exposure we gained, both during and after the event, helped us build greater trust and expand our global operations more efficiently.”
Winning the FLIA award in the Fresh Produce category in 2025 also had a lasting impact. AMFRESH was honoured for ONIX™, a premium, seedless orange with intense sweetness, balanced acidity, and consistently high-quality fruit. ONIX™ is specifically targeted at the convenience and premium retail sectors, offering efficiency benefits throughout the entire value-added chain.
‘When innovation is recognized by the industry itself, across the full value chain, it validates relevance at scale,’ says Patricia Sagarminaga, Global Director of Marketing and Communications. ‘The momentum and visibility generated by ONIX™ following its FLIA recognition in Berlin have been truly out of this world, reinforcing the power of industry-led validation.’
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The winners of the FLIA and FLIA Technology 2025 awards celebrate their success at the awards ceremony in Berlin. Second from right: Dr Valeria Kogan, CEO of Fermata Third from right: Patricia Sagarminaga, Global Director of Marketing & Communications. (Copyright: Messe Berlin)