Two things decide the condition of a consignment when it reaches the destination port: picking at the right moment, and cooling fast enough. Both happen within hours, and no later stage can compensate for getting either wrong.
Picking to the destination market
Picking time is set by the requirements of the destination market rather than by what suits collection. Fresh produce needs different ripeness depending on whether it travels by sea or by air, and on the distance to market. From the same orchard in the same week, two orders for two markets may be picked at two different stages.
Cooling early
After harvest, produce is moved to the handling facility as quickly as possible and cooled, to slow respiration and extend shelf life. For leafy vegetables this is the most urgent step of all: leaves lose water very quickly once cut.
Grading and cleaning
Produce is graded by size and appearance, cleaned, then passed to packing. Anything off-specification is separated at the grading table and does not re-enter the export flow. This is a hard rule, because a rejected consignment costs far more than the volume set aside.
A certified facility
The handling facility holds a Certificate of compliance with food safety regulations no. SCR118/2024/NNPTNT-LD, establishment code 420607000027, issued by the Lam Dong Sub-Department of Quality, Processing and Market Development and valid until 30/10/2027. The scope stated on the certificate is preliminary processing of avocado, dragon fruit and durian, at 220 tonnes per year.
For items or volumes outside that scope we discuss specifics at quotation stage rather than extrapolating from this figure.