BUCHI and CRA-W Partnership: Making In-Field Agricultural Analysis Accessible
January 22nd, 2026, Flawil, Switzerland – BUCHI has partnered with the Walloon Agricultural Research Centre (CRA-W) to enhance on-site agricultural analysis. This collaboration integrates BUCHI’s NeoSpectra Cloud Platform and portable NIR technologies into CRA-W’s research, education programs, and its innovative Mobilab initiative, delivering practical, field-ready solutions for agricultural and agro-food quality control.
CRA-W’s Mobilab initiative focuses on providing training, field demonstrations, and on-site analytical research activities, offering agricultural professionals a more accessible and efficient way to obtain analytical information. This approach aligns with CRA-W’s mission to improve agricultural practices and with BUCHI’s strategic focus on providing solutions for a broader NIR ecosystem—from farm to final product—enabling faster, smarter, and streamlined decision-making workflows.
Advancing Practical Solutions for Agriculture
With the addition of the handheld ProxiScout™ and NeoSpectra Cloud Portal, CRA-W addresses critical agricultural challenges by focusing on three key areas:
- NIR Model Deployment for End Users: Simplifying the development of portable NIR models to ensure solutions are tailored to specific agricultural needs.
- Hands-On Training and Knowledge Sharing: Enabling researchers, students, and industry professionals to gain hands-on experience with advanced analytical tools.
- Field Applications: Demonstrating the ease and versatility of portable NIR technologies through real-world scenarios and mobile services.
“This research on portable NIR technologies reflects CRA-W’s commitment to remain at the forefront of agricultural research and innovation. These tools enable us to bring quality analysis to the field and factories, making research and education more accessible and impactful”, said Vincent Baeten, Scientific Director of CRA-W’s Quality and Authentication of Agricultural Products Unit.
ProxiScout™: A Differentiated Solution for In-Field Analysis
ProxiScout™ is a portable, user-friendly NIR spectrometer featuring the largest spectral range among handheld devices (1,350–2,550 nm). This enables highly precise analysis across a wide range of parameters, making it a viable and versatile solution for on-site agricultural and raw-material analysis.
“This partnership reflects BUCHI’s commitment to making on-field analysis practical and accessible to agricultural professionals," said Marçal Plans Pujolras, Global Director of NIR Applications at BUCHI. "By equipping CRA-W’s Mobilab initiative with our technology, among others, we are enabling more efficient decision-making in agriculture, supported by robust and easy-to-deploy NIR solutions.
About BUCHI
Quality in Your Hands: BUCHI provides high-quality, easy-to-use laboratory and in-process solutions for a wide range of industries. With ProxiScout™ and the NeoSpectra Cloud Portal, BUCHI expands its NIR portfolio with a powerful handheld NIR spectrometer that enables precise, lab-quality analysis directly in the field. Engineered for instant, reliable, and accurate on-site measurement, ProxiScout™ allows users to quickly quantify multiple parameters, streamline workflows, and make immediate, informed decisions, thereby reducing costs, optimizing production, and enhancing productivity. ProxiScout™ offers a versatile solution tailored for diverse industries.
For more information about BUCHI and ProxiScout™, please click here
About CRA-W
The Quality and Authentication of Agricultural Products Unit of CRA-W is positioned as a key player in cutting-edge and innovative research, serving the agricultural and agri-food sectors. The Unit is actively committed to enhancing the quality, traceability, typicity, and sustainability of products, including those from short supply chains and differentiated quality sectors. Moreover, through its applied research, the Unit contributes to informing policy decisions and guiding consumer choices. The Unit pursues several main objectives: to lead the development of innovative analytical methods; to develop decision support tools for precision agriculture and livestock farming; to be an active player in the European Research Area (ERA); to act as a key stakeholder in the implementation of innovative solutions for all actors in the agricultural and food production sectors, and to focus on the valorization and transfer of research results.
To learn more about CRA-W, please click here