Our process runs in five stages, from the growing area to the moment goods leave port. Each stage keeps its own records, so any lot can be traced back.
1. Production area
Sites are chosen for soil, altitude and water suited to each crop. The cooperative agrees varieties, care regimes, permitted inputs and pre-harvest intervals with member households. Technical staff visit on a regular cycle and maintain the field log.
2. Harvest and preparation
Fruit and vegetables are picked at the maturity the destination market requires. Produce moves quickly to the preparation area to limit post-harvest loss, then it is graded by size and appearance, cleaned and cooled.
3. Quality control
Each lot is checked against the criteria agreed with the customer: appearance, size, maturity, defect rate and any parameter specific to the import market. Off-specification produce is separated immediately and never blended into an export lot. Results are filed against the lot code.
4. Export packing
Packed to the agreed specification: carton type, net weight, stacking pattern and lot label. The lot label is the link between the goods and the paperwork — from the label you can look up the source orchard, harvest date and inspection results.
5. International delivery
Loaded into reefer containers at the temperature set for the item, or sent by air where transit time matters. Goods are handed over at port under the agreed Incoterms, together with the lot documentation.
Why five documented stages
With export produce, most of the risk sits not at the final step but in the decisions before it: variety, picking time, how quickly the crop was cooled. Recording each stage lets us find the cause when a lot falls short, rather than simply noting the outcome — and it is what makes the next season better.