Quality Management System
Top Quality from South Tyrol - Südtirol.
Apples from South Tyrol - Südtirol are more than just a piece of unspoiled nature. They are the pride of an entire region. As a byword for health, unmistakable taste and unique pleasure, they meet best quality standards. We have to maintain their inner and external values. Therefore, our apples pass through a series of comprehensive quality controls. From orchard to the shelf where it is sold, our gapless quality management system sets new benchmarks in the fruit-producing economy.
It includes carefully controlled cultivation methods ensuring compliance with all current production regulations. All this in addition to the most stringent guidelines that control harvesting, delivery and storage, sorting, packaging and dispatch. Finally, we apply consistent analytical processes, extremely strict selection criteria and clear recording methods that allow us to trace the development of each apple.
VOG’s Quality Management System
Cultivation
01
- Compliance with AGRIOS guidelines for integrated production:
- Selection of apple varieties suitable for the geographic area
- Increase of food safety
- Pesticides chosen from the list of active ingredients permitted for use in orchards
- Recording of each use of pesticides and fertilizers
- Control of the companies, their cultivation areas, licenses and records
- Compliance with AGRIOS guidelines on running agricultural enterprises is the basis for participation in IGP and GLOBALG.A.P. certification
- Competent technical advice
Harvesting
02
- Test for ripeness with evaluation of internal values:
- Level of starch reduction into sugar
- Sugar
- Acid
- Fruit flesh strength
- Identification of optimum harvesting window based on ripeness analysis
- Guidelines for harvesting and delivery
- Compliance with hygiene parameters
- Careful hand-picked harvesting
Delivery and storage
03
- Visual checks of harvest
- Labelling of each bin to guarantee product traceability:
- Grower
- Orchard/li>
- Variety/li>
- Delivery date/li>
- Production method/li>
- Quality
- Sampling for analysis of pesticide residue. Risk analysis based on the monitoring report
- Evaluation of internal quality parameters
- Allocation of the optimal cell (climate conditioned) for storage (short, medium or long term)
Sorting
04
- Sorting/grading program
- Standard guidelines for product classification and labelling
- Labelling after sorting with data taken from the delivery note to guarantee traceability
- Sorting protocol with quality and grade classes
Packaging and dispatch
05
- Selection of quality according to the specifications of each order in conformity with the applicable standards or the customer’s specific technical requirements
- Outgoing traceability with packaging date, batch number or reference code
- Controls on the conformity of the internal and external quality parameters with the specifications requested
- Final inspection of products and packaging to determine conformity with the marketing standards, with the brand usage regulations and/or the certification standard
Traceability
06
- Database with complete information on orchard cultivation
- Batch number assigned to the delivery note
- Labelling of all containers to guarantee identification during the processing cycle
- Product sorting protocol
- Connection to the results of company inspections and control of records
Consortium of South Tyrolean Fruit Growers Cooperatives coop. soc. agr.
ADRESS
Jakobistraße 1/a
39018 Terlano (South Tyrol)
CONTACT
Tel. +39 0471 256 700
Fax +39 0471 256 699
info@vog.it
info@pec.vog.it