Agricultural technology use growing in California

[Jesus Malverde]

Ted Batkin knows there might not be enough workers this year to pick California's signature orange crop due to an ongoing shortage of migrant farm laborers.

That's why he's working on a robot.

It will have arms, hands and even eyes, and do the harvesting work of four to eight people, depending on its speed. Besides citrus, the robot - it still doesn't have an official name - can be used for apples, pears, peaches and other stone fruit.

"It's a game changer," said Batkin, the former president of the Citrus Research Board. "We'll no longer be dependent on human labor for harvesting."

http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/Agricultural-technology-use-growing-in-California-4796028.php#photo-5149727