A programmable sensor platform to mitigate crop loss caused by post-harvest disease in potato.

SensIT Ventures, Inc. (SensIT) is commercializing a novel chemical sensor platform that combines low-cost and high-performance features required for precision agriculture and post-harvest applications. The miniature chemical sensor platform is a fundamentally new type of ion mobility spectrometer that runs on low power DC voltage such as a common 9V battery. In this Phase I proof-of-concept proposal, our goal is to custom build and calibrate gas phase sensors to provide an early warning of potato rot in the post-harvest supply chain as a first commercial example of the device utility and value.In prior published work, unique volatile organic compounds (VOCs) have been identified to be emitted from tubers infected with three major potato pathogens: Phytophthora infestans (late blight), Fusarium coeruleum (dry rot) and Pectobacterium carotovorum (soft rot). To demonstrate technical feasibility, our Phase I objectives are to measure the detection thresholds levels necessary to identify each VOC from within this panel of candidate biomarkers.