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Interpoma Tours 2026: where innovation takes shape in the field
Interpoma Tours 2026: where innovation takes shape in the field
The programme for Interpoma Tours 2026 has now been unveiled, featuring ten guided tours spanning applied research, post-harvest technology, sustainability, organic farming, production models and underground storage. Running from 25 to 27 November during Interpoma, the international trade fair dedicated to apples held at Fiera Bolzano, the tours will offer a close-up look at some of the most advanced industry operations in South Tyrol and Trentino.
The programme for the Interpoma Tours is now online. The guided tours will take visitors to apple-growing operations, research centres, businesses and local cooperatives. They are organised by Fiera Bolzano in partnership with the South Tyrolean Extension Service for Fruit- and Winegrowing, and other local organisations. The tours are an integral part of the 14th edition of Interpoma, the world's only trade fair dedicated exclusively to the apple sector, taking place from 25 to 27 November 2026.
In total, ten events make up the Tours calendar, spread across the fair's three days. To make participation easier for a diverse, international audience, all the guided tours will be held in English.
The tours will allow visitors, trade professionals and media to move beyond the exhibition halls and see up close how innovations are being put into practice across the apple supply chain: from applied research and digitalisation to grading and packaging technology, storage, sustainability, organic farming, water management and new cultivation models.
"The Interpoma Tours are one of the fair's most hands-on formats, giving people a genuine, first-hand look at what is actually happening in businesses, research centres and local cooperatives," explains Anna Crosignani, Brand Manager at Interpoma. "It is precisely this interplay between theory and practice, between innovation on display and innovation in action, that makes Interpoma a unique event for the international apple industry."
Tour 1 and 3 | The complete journey of the Melinda apple: from the packhouse to underground storage
chambers
Run twice during the fair, this tour will take participants through the journey followed by the Melinda apple once it has been picked. The visit includes the packhouse of one of the Consortium's cooperatives, a tasting of select varieties, and entry to the spectacular underground storage chambers inside the Rio Maggiore Mine. Here, deep within a mountain, the apples are kept in a unique underground environment – a symbol of innovative, sustainable post-harvest quality management.
Tour 2 and 10 | Behind the scenes of technological innovation: applied research shaping the future of apples at NOI Techpark
Offered at two separate times, this visit will take participants to NOI Techpark in Bolzano, South Tyrol's innovation district, where research bodies, companies, start-ups and laboratories work together to develop practical solutions for agriculture and the agri-food sector. Following a brief introduction to the NOI ecosystem, the tour will move on to a series of laboratories that play a strategic role for the apple supply chain: the Fruit & Vegetable Processing Lab, the Laboratory for Flavours and Metabolites, the Sensing Technologies Lab and the Agroforestry Innovation Lab. It is an opportunity to observe up close where ideas, scientific research and real-world applications intersect.
Tour 4 | The future is now: advanced technology and new perspectives on cultivation
The tour's first stop will be in Val Venosta, at Manuel Telser's Integrated Production (IP) commercial orchard in Corzes. Sitting at an altitude of between 800 and 1,000 metres, the 12-hectare holding is now run by the family's fourth generation, growing varieties including Golden Delicious, Ambrosia, Pinova and SweeTango. The second stop will be at the GEOS cooperative in Silandro – one of the seven cooperatives within the VIP Consortium and among the most modern fruit-handling centres in South Tyrol. GEOS was the first cooperative in Val Venosta to introduce robotic apple-packing systems, and has operated an automated vertical-racking warehouse since 2016.
Tour 5 | Don't panic... it's organic! Production and strategy in the organic market
This tour, dedicated to organic farming, will take participants to Markus Ladurner's organic orchards in Lagundo, on the Plars alluvial fan at an altitude of 500 metres. Run according to organic farming principles for almost 30 years, the business grows varieties such as Gala, Golden Delicious, Braeburn, Natyra, Topaz, Pink Lady and Cosmic Crisp. The second stop will be at the Biosüdtirol cooperative in Lana, founded in 1990 by six farmers and now supplied by more than 300 growers. Here, advanced technology and software allow every step to be monitored, from production through harvesting to sorting and packaging.
Tour 6 | Innovation is the watchword: varietal trials and the wind tunnel
This route will stop at Fuji Società Agricola s.r.l. in Laives, an innovative IP business open to experimentation. The operation grows 13 different apple varieties across 30 hectares, standing out for the breadth of its varietal range. The tour will then continue to the Agroforestry Innovation Lab in Bolzano, linking field trials to the new frontiers of applied research and technological innovation.
Tour 7 | Micro and macro: comparing two family-run business models
This tour will compare two very different family business models. The first stop will be at Michael Komiss's IP apple business on the outskirts of Bolzano, known for growing a range of varieties and for its direct sales of apple crisps under the "Frutty" brand. The second stop will be in Vilpiano, at Egma/Fructus Meran, where the fruit auction – which handles over 30,000 tonnes of fruit from almost 300 growers between August and October – operates alongside the processing of apples, pears and frozen fruit.
Tour 8 | Excellence is nothing without technique: sprayers and digital optimisation
The first stop will be at the Sprayer Testing Centre in Lana, run by the South Tyrol Fruit and Vine Advisory Centre. During the visit, participants will be able to observe how nozzle output is measured and how sprayers are inspected – a mandatory activity for farmers operating under the AGRIOS protocol and/or GLOBALG.A.P. guidelines. The tour will then continue to Klaus Ganterer's IP commercial orchard in Foiana, above Lana – a family-run operation representative of South Tyrolean apple growing, which has in recent years introduced a number of sustainability measures: from irrigation based on the trees' actual water requirements, measured using soil moisture sensors, to the use of solar power, including for the electric harvesting platform.
Tour 9 | Apples across the region: from grower to cooperative
The tour will begin at the ROEN cooperative in Caldaro, one of ten cooperatives within the VOG area, which handles sorting, storage, packaging and logistics for the apples of almost 1,000 members. The cooperative has recently introduced a new automated high-bay warehouse, capable of storing more than 19,000 crates of apples, with an external façade featuring over 2,700 solar panels. The second stop will be at Klaus Pfeifer's commercial fruit farm, run under IP principles, in Laives, where participants can find out more about the use of multi-axis training systems and the cultivation of varieties such as Gala, Kanzi, Granny Smith, Giga and Pink Lady.
Places on the Tours are limited, and booking via an online ticket purchase is required.
Full details – on the programme, availability and how to take part – can be found on the Interpoma website: https://www.fierabolzano.it/en/interpoma/interpoma-tours
Until 31 August 2026, tickets for Interpoma Congress can also be purchased online at the discounted Early Bird rate of €72.
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