Australian Company to Set Up Digital Marketplace

Australian Agtech company, Optomni has today announced the upcoming launch of a new innovative digital marketplace for fresh produce, allowing buyers and sellers to trade in real-time, using an internet-enabled device. After the early access period, Optomni will support international trade and will support marketing to bring on board overseas buyers and develop that market. Mr Mekhtiev says OmniOrder is not just a platform based on listings, which are often hard to manage because they require constant data entry and management, but it has embedded tools to better manage and control inventory.

Food waste in the fresh produce supply chain occurs for many reasons, according to Mr Mekhtiev, one of which is poor demand forecasting. He says digital trading allows all parts of the supply chain to use AI algorithms that can monitor demand and sell-through rates and alert sellers when a particular batch is selling too slowly and is at risk of spoilage or quality downgrade. The application helps automate repetitive processes, maintain supplier/customer communication and loyalty through private and select pricing.

The Optomni CEO says that one of the advantages of going digital, especially in the fruit and vegetable industry, is there is not yet a great appreciation and understanding for the role that technology can play – but the opportunity is huge. Mr Mekhtiev says the platform was backed up by intensive on the ground research in fresh produce markets in Queensland, Victoria, and South Australia.