Picking Your Own Produce

This has always been brought up as an issue for online grocery ordering, being unable to pick your own produce like you could in the store.   First I have heard of this approach.  I do wonder if the majority of people want that level of choice, as long as general quality was assured.

Walmart 3-D image patent lets online shoppers pick their produce
  
By George Anderson in Retailwire with expert discussion

(Includes patent images) Through a special arrangement, what follows is an excerpt of an article from Retail Dive, an e-newsletter and website providing a 60-second bird’s eye view of the latest retail news and trends. .... 

A new patent from Walmart would allow consumers to view real images of their groceries — rather than stock images — before purchasing online, CB Insights reported.

Through the system, called the “Fresh Online Experience” (FOE), a customer orders an item based on a stock photo. A store associate then scans the exact item in Walmart’s inventory with a 3-D scanner and the image is sent to the customer to accept or reject the particular item.  ... " 

Laser Branding Replaces Produce Stickers

Marking produce in grocery has long been an  issue.   Saw a similar approach suggested years ago.  Appearance like a cattle brand.   Looks like it works well on produce with big a flat surface area, like potatoes, but how about Broccoli?  Improvements in image recognition may still be best.

Swedish supermarket replaces produce stickers with laser branding
by Katherine Martinko (@feistyredhair)

The 'natural branding' process marks the outermost layer of peel without using ink or affecting taste and shelf life.

Plastic produce stickers might be a thing of the past if Swedish supermarket ICA has its way. The chain, with more than 1,300 stores across Sweden, began experimenting last December with ‘natural branding,’ a process that imprints a fruit or vegetable peel with its name, country of origin, and code number using a laser. The low-energy, carbon dioxide laser burns away the first layer of pigment to a clearly legible result that uses no ink or additional products. It is a superficial, contact-free method that does not affect taste or shelf life. .... "