What are the challenges of sourcing high-quality fruit for processing?
At Avondale Foods, we pride ourselves on a high-quality, premium product free from extraneous matter. Striving to be the No.1 Australian baker’s choice for premium fruit ingredients, we maintain our promise to customers – delivering ‘quality on time’. Sourcing high-quality fruits for processing is hence a top priority, and it presents several challenges that must be managed consistently – regardless of the fluctuating season harvest results.
Here are a few key challenges that must be overcome in producing a premium quality end product:
Seasonality and Availability
Most fruits are seasonal, meaning they are only available for harvest during certain months of the year. A challenge of this can be sourcing fresh, high-quality fruits consistently, especially during off seasons. If more fruit needs to be sourced externally, this can lead to higher costs in cost, transportation, and more expensive fruit following a challenging harvest season.
Quality Consistency
When promoting and selling a premium fruit ingredient product, quality standards and testing is rigorous. Ensuring fruits consistently meet the required standards (e.g. brix or sugar levels, ripeness, size and colour) can be difficult due to variations in the weather, soil and farming practices where the fruit was grown. Since we purchase fruit from multiple growers and orchardists around Australia, the quality assurance process of processing fruit is ongoing, ultimately to make sure the final product is consistent for our customers.
Supply Chain Logistics
While cooling storage methods are highly effective, fruits are perishable, and require careful handling, fast transportation and proper storage to avoid spoilage. This is an ongoing priority, with management of procured fruit ready for processing being one of our top challenges.
Pesticides and Contaminants
Ensuring no residual pesticides, herbicides or other chemicals are present on the fruit before processing is of optimal importance. Not only can these chemicals lead to regulatory issues if they are not removed, they also pose health risks. To manage this challenge, fruit is thoroughly washed and treated before production commences.
Compliance with regulations
Food safety concerns and quality standards within Australia pose an ongoing challenge to all producers within the food industry. Non-compliance with food safety standards can result in product rejections from the client, shipment delays and penalties.
Managing these challenges in procuring high-quality fruit requires effective supply chain management, strong relationships with growers and suppliers, and investment in labour and technology for ongoing quality management and control. As a processing company that continues to grow, we prioritize the ongoing quality management and control of our products, ensuring the client receives a high-quality, consistent product every time.
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