The first tomato harvesting robots have been released. They are already applied

In November 2025, the first group of agricultural robots designed for automated harvesting was launched in the greenhouse of the Dutch tomato producer Westburg. The devices, developed by the American company Four Growers, successfully clean cherry tomatoes, carefully removing the fruits from the bush using vacuum pickup technology.

According to one of the owners of Westburg, Bas van Leeuwen, the adaptation of equipment to operating conditions took a record time: seven days after installation, the system was fully ready for operation.

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Фото: Four Growers

According to Four Growers sales director Nick Bulen, the introduction of robotic systems can reduce the use of manual labor by almost half.

For the developer, the launch of the first industrial group of robot assemblers was a landmark event, in practice demonstrating the market viability of his technological solution.

According to Nick Bulen, in the summer of 2024, the speed collector robot caught up with the person, which made its use economically feasible for greenhouse farms and opened up opportunities for commercial negotiations. Four Growers is betting on speed as a faster robot means more tomatoes are harvested at the same cost. The first robot models were acquired by Syngenta and NatureFresh.

The robotic complex used, the basis of which is the Fanuc manipulator, is able to remove not only cherries, but also other small-fruited varieties of tomatoes, including plum-shaped ones. The company plans to further diversify its products: in 2026, a similar robot for harvesting cucumbers is expected.

As Nick Bulen explained, the vacuum principle will not be used to work with this type of vegetable - the developer intends to use another technology.^[1]

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