A new machine aims to make a tedious farming job safer and easier while also lowering food waste.

As part of its Tech Highlight video series, produce technology company PostHarvest put the spotlight on Agrobot's E-Series, a machine that uses 24 robotic arms to gently and efficiently harvest strawberries.

"They are strongly committed to creating cost-effective solutions for farmers suffering from labor shortages and are actively helping to reduce waste from improper handling," the video said about Agrobot.

The video showed the E-Series' arms acting independently from one another to gently pick strawberries from cramped spaces.

The machine uses LIDAR sensors — like those used in Waymo's self-driving electric cars — to detect motion around the E-Series, and it automatically stops if anyone gets too close. Other sensors are used in conjunction with artificial intelligence to determine when berries should be harvested.

When it's time to pick strawberries, the E-Series never touches the actual fruit. Instead, the robotic arms grip and cut the stem and then place the berries into a basket.

"Such a large machine with such delicate and accurate picking," one YouTube commenter wrote. "Very impressive."

PostHarvest has claimed that by picking food gently and at the right time, Agrobot can help reduce food waste, which is a massive problem worldwide.

Roughly one-third of food in the United States, or 80 million tons, gets wasted each year. That's the equivalent of about 149 billion meals, which is a tough number to swallow when one in seven Americans is food insecure.

That waste also means the average American family throws away more than 300 pounds of food a year, at a cost of about $1,200 per family per year.

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A UC Davis study found that in developed countries, roughly 20% of food is wasted because of improper handling, packaging, and transportation from farms. That number increases to 30% in less-developed countries.

The E-Series is still in development and not yet available for purchase, according to Agrobot. The company does currently sell a solar-powered harvester, which it has claimed enhances food safety while increasing labor efficiency by 40%.

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