As the Northern Territory's mango season reaches its peak, a quiet revolution is taking place in the orchards. Two brothers are pioneering a high-tech approach that is set to change how Australia harvests one of its most beloved summer fruits.
From Family Orchard to Tech Powerhouse
Daniel and Ryan Niceforo, who operate farms in Katherine, Mataranka, and Darwin, have transformed their family business into a beacon of agricultural innovation. What began in 1998 with their father Nino planting trees has blossomed into Niceforo Farms, now the Northern Territory's largest mango grower and the country's primary producer of the popular Calypso mango variety.
"We very much believe in technology and automation, and we've always embraced it," Daniel Niceforo explains. "We're building on what Dad has done, and technology is just at that point now where we can really integrate it into our farming."
The Robotic Harvesting Breakthrough
The centrepiece of their technological transformation is a groundbreaking robotic mango harvester developed in partnership with Central Queensland University (CQU) and Freelance Robotics. A commercial-ready prototype is now nearing completion.
This auto-harvester mounts onto an unmanned vehicle and employs up to 12 robotic arms to identify and pick ripe mangoes with precision. The technology evolved from earlier work by Professor Kerry Walsh from CQU, who initially developed a camera system for mapping orchard yields.
"We started working with Professor Kerry Walsh from CQU when he was working on a camera system that went through the orchard counting flowers and fruit and used GPS to put that on a map to help with forecasting and yield productions," Daniel recalled. "And because he'd developed that camera system, he thought, if we can map it then why can't we reach out and pick it? That's how Professor Walsh came up with the idea of the auto harvester."
Broader Implications for Australian Agriculture
The innovation extends beyond mangoes, with the brothers envisioning their robotic picker serving multiple crop types in the future. Their forward-thinking approach exemplifies a broader trend in Australian agriculture.
Peta Ward, Westpac's National General Manager of Regional & Agribusiness, observes: "Farming is often thought of as a labour-intensive industry, but what I see when I'm visiting our agribusiness customers is that many farmers are at the forefront of science and innovation. It's all about using the latest technology to increase productivity and improve outputs and I never cease to be amazed by the innovation we see."
Meanwhile, the Niceforo brothers continue to push boundaries, currently trialling two new mango varieties that could further diversify Australia's fruit offerings.
