• Latest
  • Trending

Northwest processor upgrades plant to extend shelf life and improve quality

May 24, 2022
Mogilev’s Bounty: A Case Study in Maximizing Root Vegetable Yields Through Technology and Coordination

Mogilev’s Bounty: A Case Study in Maximizing Root Vegetable Yields Through Technology and Coordination

October 26, 2025
Carrots Cross Borders: How Russian Exports Meet International Phytosanitary Standards

Carrots Cross Borders: How Russian Exports Meet International Phytosanitary Standards

October 25, 2025
Ulyanovsk’s Agricultural Pivot: Reading the Signals Behind a 30% Drop in Sugar Beet

Ulyanovsk’s Agricultural Pivot: Reading the Signals Behind a 30% Drop in Sugar Beet

October 24, 2025
The Siberian Sugar Fortress: Efficiency, Import Substitution, and the Pain of Progress in Altai Krai

The Siberian Sugar Fortress: Efficiency, Import Substitution, and the Pain of Progress in Altai Krai

October 23, 2025
Mordovia’s Sugar Beet Surge: A Blueprint for Breaking Yield Barriers

Mordovia’s Sugar Beet Surge: A Blueprint for Breaking Yield Barriers

October 22, 2025
The Tyumen Model: Record Yields and Strategic Storage in a Volatile Global Food Market

The Tyumen Model: Record Yields and Strategic Storage in a Volatile Global Food Market

October 21, 2025
Beyond the Harvest: How Tatarstan’s Beet Success Fuels a Global Sugar Reckoning

Beyond the Harvest: How Tatarstan’s Beet Success Fuels a Global Sugar Reckoning

October 20, 2025
Beyond Beta-Carotene: How Specific Carrot Cultivars and Agronomic Practices Can Potentially Reduce Cancer Risk

Beyond Beta-Carotene: How Specific Carrot Cultivars and Agronomic Practices Can Potentially Reduce Cancer Risk

October 19, 2025
Challenging the Norm: A Profitable Case for Rainfed Carrot Production in Western Ukraine

Challenging the Norm: A Profitable Case for Rainfed Carrot Production in Western Ukraine

October 18, 2025
Beyond 1,500 Tonnes: The Agrotech Formula Behind a Record Root Crop Harvest

Beyond 1,500 Tonnes: The Agrotech Formula Behind a Record Root Crop Harvest

October 17, 2025
91 Tons per Hectare: Deconstructing the Carrot Yield Record from Tort-Gul

91 Tons per Hectare: Deconstructing the Carrot Yield Record from Tort-Gul

October 16, 2025
Siberian Snowfall Slashes Harvest: A Case Study in Climate Volatility and Agricultural Resilience

Siberian Snowfall Slashes Harvest: A Case Study in Climate Volatility and Agricultural Resilience

October 15, 2025
  • Company
Tuesday, October 28, 2025
Vegetables News
  • NEWS
    Mogilev’s Bounty: A Case Study in Maximizing Root Vegetable Yields Through Technology and Coordination

    Mogilev’s Bounty: A Case Study in Maximizing Root Vegetable Yields Through Technology and Coordination

    Carrots Cross Borders: How Russian Exports Meet International Phytosanitary Standards

    Carrots Cross Borders: How Russian Exports Meet International Phytosanitary Standards

    Ulyanovsk’s Agricultural Pivot: Reading the Signals Behind a 30% Drop in Sugar Beet

    Ulyanovsk’s Agricultural Pivot: Reading the Signals Behind a 30% Drop in Sugar Beet

    The Siberian Sugar Fortress: Efficiency, Import Substitution, and the Pain of Progress in Altai Krai

    The Siberian Sugar Fortress: Efficiency, Import Substitution, and the Pain of Progress in Altai Krai

    Mordovia’s Sugar Beet Surge: A Blueprint for Breaking Yield Barriers

    Mordovia’s Sugar Beet Surge: A Blueprint for Breaking Yield Barriers

    The Tyumen Model: Record Yields and Strategic Storage in a Volatile Global Food Market

    The Tyumen Model: Record Yields and Strategic Storage in a Volatile Global Food Market

    Beyond the Harvest: How Tatarstan’s Beet Success Fuels a Global Sugar Reckoning

    Beyond the Harvest: How Tatarstan’s Beet Success Fuels a Global Sugar Reckoning

    Beyond Beta-Carotene: How Specific Carrot Cultivars and Agronomic Practices Can Potentially Reduce Cancer Risk

    Beyond Beta-Carotene: How Specific Carrot Cultivars and Agronomic Practices Can Potentially Reduce Cancer Risk

    Challenging the Norm: A Profitable Case for Rainfed Carrot Production in Western Ukraine

    Challenging the Norm: A Profitable Case for Rainfed Carrot Production in Western Ukraine

  • AGROTECHNOLOGY
    • All
    • Climate
    • Crop protection
    • digital (smart)
    • dron
    • Fertilizer
    • Research
    • weed
    Sowing Certainty, Reaping Risk: The High Stakes of Seed Integrity and Genetic Purity

    Sowing Certainty, Reaping Risk: The High Stakes of Seed Integrity and Genetic Purity

    The Double Blow: Analyzing the Systemic Risks Behind a Pumpkin Crop Collapse

    The Double Blow: Analyzing the Systemic Risks Behind a Pumpkin Crop Collapse

    The Water Spinach Specialist: A Blueprint for High-Value Specialty Crops and Cooperative Success

    The Water Spinach Specialist: A Blueprint for High-Value Specialty Crops and Cooperative Success

    Weathering the Storm: How Vietnamese Farmers and Traders Collaborate to Stabilize the Greens Market

    Weathering the Storm: How Vietnamese Farmers and Traders Collaborate to Stabilize the Greens Market

    Stavropol’s Borscht Belt: High-Yield Vegetable Harvest Reaches One-Third Completion

    Stavropol’s Borscht Belt: High-Yield Vegetable Harvest Reaches One-Third Completion

    Yakutia Defies the Odds: Harvest Data Reveals a Surge in Arctic Agriculture

    Yakutia Defies the Odds: Harvest Data Reveals a Surge in Arctic Agriculture

    Beyond the Subsidy: Unlocking True Productivity Gains in Ugandan Agriculture

    Beyond the Subsidy: Unlocking True Productivity Gains in Ugandan Agriculture

    A Double-Edged Sword: Soaring Chinese Cabbage Imports into Zabaykalsky Bring Heightened Biosecurity Risks

    A Double-Edged Sword: Soaring Chinese Cabbage Imports into Zabaykalsky Bring Heightened Biosecurity Risks

    Beyond the Field: How Cooperative-Led Education is Revolutionizing Garlic and Onion Production

    Beyond the Field: How Cooperative-Led Education is Revolutionizing Garlic and Onion Production

  • IRRIGATION
  • SEED PRODUCTION
    • Vegetables
    • Fruit
  • PROCESSING
No Result
View All Result
  • NEWS
    Mogilev’s Bounty: A Case Study in Maximizing Root Vegetable Yields Through Technology and Coordination

    Mogilev’s Bounty: A Case Study in Maximizing Root Vegetable Yields Through Technology and Coordination

    Carrots Cross Borders: How Russian Exports Meet International Phytosanitary Standards

    Carrots Cross Borders: How Russian Exports Meet International Phytosanitary Standards

    Ulyanovsk’s Agricultural Pivot: Reading the Signals Behind a 30% Drop in Sugar Beet

    Ulyanovsk’s Agricultural Pivot: Reading the Signals Behind a 30% Drop in Sugar Beet

    The Siberian Sugar Fortress: Efficiency, Import Substitution, and the Pain of Progress in Altai Krai

    The Siberian Sugar Fortress: Efficiency, Import Substitution, and the Pain of Progress in Altai Krai

    Mordovia’s Sugar Beet Surge: A Blueprint for Breaking Yield Barriers

    Mordovia’s Sugar Beet Surge: A Blueprint for Breaking Yield Barriers

    The Tyumen Model: Record Yields and Strategic Storage in a Volatile Global Food Market

    The Tyumen Model: Record Yields and Strategic Storage in a Volatile Global Food Market

    Beyond the Harvest: How Tatarstan’s Beet Success Fuels a Global Sugar Reckoning

    Beyond the Harvest: How Tatarstan’s Beet Success Fuels a Global Sugar Reckoning

    Beyond Beta-Carotene: How Specific Carrot Cultivars and Agronomic Practices Can Potentially Reduce Cancer Risk

    Beyond Beta-Carotene: How Specific Carrot Cultivars and Agronomic Practices Can Potentially Reduce Cancer Risk

    Challenging the Norm: A Profitable Case for Rainfed Carrot Production in Western Ukraine

    Challenging the Norm: A Profitable Case for Rainfed Carrot Production in Western Ukraine

  • AGROTECHNOLOGY
    • All
    • Climate
    • Crop protection
    • digital (smart)
    • dron
    • Fertilizer
    • Research
    • weed
    Sowing Certainty, Reaping Risk: The High Stakes of Seed Integrity and Genetic Purity

    Sowing Certainty, Reaping Risk: The High Stakes of Seed Integrity and Genetic Purity

    The Double Blow: Analyzing the Systemic Risks Behind a Pumpkin Crop Collapse

    The Double Blow: Analyzing the Systemic Risks Behind a Pumpkin Crop Collapse

    The Water Spinach Specialist: A Blueprint for High-Value Specialty Crops and Cooperative Success

    The Water Spinach Specialist: A Blueprint for High-Value Specialty Crops and Cooperative Success

    Weathering the Storm: How Vietnamese Farmers and Traders Collaborate to Stabilize the Greens Market

    Weathering the Storm: How Vietnamese Farmers and Traders Collaborate to Stabilize the Greens Market

    Stavropol’s Borscht Belt: High-Yield Vegetable Harvest Reaches One-Third Completion

    Stavropol’s Borscht Belt: High-Yield Vegetable Harvest Reaches One-Third Completion

    Yakutia Defies the Odds: Harvest Data Reveals a Surge in Arctic Agriculture

    Yakutia Defies the Odds: Harvest Data Reveals a Surge in Arctic Agriculture

    Beyond the Subsidy: Unlocking True Productivity Gains in Ugandan Agriculture

    Beyond the Subsidy: Unlocking True Productivity Gains in Ugandan Agriculture

    A Double-Edged Sword: Soaring Chinese Cabbage Imports into Zabaykalsky Bring Heightened Biosecurity Risks

    A Double-Edged Sword: Soaring Chinese Cabbage Imports into Zabaykalsky Bring Heightened Biosecurity Risks

    Beyond the Field: How Cooperative-Led Education is Revolutionizing Garlic and Onion Production

    Beyond the Field: How Cooperative-Led Education is Revolutionizing Garlic and Onion Production

  • IRRIGATION
  • SEED PRODUCTION
    • Vegetables
    • Fruit
  • PROCESSING
No Result
View All Result
Vegetables News
Home Processing

Northwest processor upgrades plant to extend shelf life and improve quality

by Tatyana Ivanovich
May 24, 2022
in Processing
0

Tree Top Inc., the first fruit-processing cooperative, was established nearly 50 years ago in central Washington in the middle of the state’s apple country. The cooperative is owned by more than 1,100 grower-members from Washington, Oregon and Idaho. The company started as an apple juice processor but has grown into a processor of juice, concentrates and dried products, and as a foodservice processor for fresh-cut apple slices.

The company is divided into two different sales divisions separating their consumer goods from their ingredients and foodservice products.

“We’re primarily geared toward foodservice. That’s been our whole bent since we started in the fresh-cut market,” said Ned Rawn, national account manager for foodservice.

“Apples are becoming a big part of the foodservice arena and (fresh-cut) seems to have gained some traction.”

Tree Top entered the fresh-cut market in 2000, supplying fast food restaurants in the Pacific Northwest with high-quality apple slices. In 2006, a new fresh-cut facility was completed in Selah, Wash., with the latest processing equipment for the growing foodservice market. The 26,000 square foot plant is fully automated and completely sterile. But just three years later, Tree Top spent considerable capital updating the fresh-cut operation to improve quality and extend shelf life.

Because quality is so important to national foodservice chains, Tree Top was continually looking for ways to maintain quality.

“It’s constant learning,” Rawn said. “We’re always striving to put out the best quality we can.”

So just a few years after constructing a new building, Tree Top ripped the front of it off and rebuilt it with a redesigned front end system. The new process uses a flume system to move apples through the facility, limiting hard contacts that could bruise the apples. The new line also helped to improve efficiency. Different pack sizes can now be run at the same time. The flumes are independent of each other, which also means that the company can run organics and conventional apples side by side.

Having the flumes separate also helps to prevent cross-contamination, increases traceability and provides better sanitation. Because each lot runs on its own line, Rawn said the company now has the flexibility to flush individual flumes which keeps the plant functional at all times on the other flumes.

“Tree Top is so proactive in the food safety area and with traceability and all that goes with it, that we encourage customers to come in and see how we’re doing it,” Rawn said.

The processor is audited six to eight times a year – on top of the annual American Institute of Baking audits, Rawn said. The various second- and third-party audits are required by customers and take up quite a bit of time, but they give Tree Top the opportunity to show customers how good the food safety and traceability programs are.

“It just makes us do our job better,” Rawn said.

Tree Top works with national accounts to develop signature products for their stores. The company does individual packages for fast food chains as well as a larger 3-pound bag for restaurants or other establishments, Rawn said. Custom packaging and custom cuts provide value to its customers, and the goal is to create products that enhance the customers’ businesses with products tailored to their needs.

Tree Top was able to update the building without experiencing a lag in final product. The work was mostly done by changing the work schedules to four-days on, three days off, which kept the upgrades from interfering with production and provided the contractors ample time to work without interruption.

“It was quite the engineering feat,” said Sharon Miracle, corporate communications manager for Tree Top.

The update to the line was a no-brainer when Tree Top managers saw that more product could be run through with little downtime for switchover. And by reducing damage to apples before cutting, the overall quality could be maintained over a longer period of time. The extended shelf life will help Tree Top expand its current distribution, as the demand for fresh-cut apples grows, Miracle said.

Also new at Tree Top is the reorganization of the foodservice operations, under a new vice president position held by Dan Wenker. The fresh-cut plant was built at the same site as Tree Top’s dried ingredients facility, so that waste from the cutting operation can go to the drying plant to use all of the raw apple product. And in October of last year, Tree Top acquired the Medford, Ore.–based Sabroso Co., a manufacturer of fruit purees. All foodservice operations were realigned recently to provide a more coordinated approach to sales, so customers don’t receive calls from multiple salespersons from various parts of the company, Rawn said.

Tags: Northwest processor
Previous Post

Despite slow sales and lower traffic, operators are optimistic

Next Post

Initiative pushes for common, interchangeable audit measures

Next Post

Initiative pushes for common, interchangeable audit measures

  • Home
  • Privacy Policy
  • Privacy Policy of vegetables.news app

© 2020-2024 VEGETABLES NEWS

No Result
View All Result
  • NEWS
  • AGROTECHNOLOGY
  • IRRIGATION
  • SEED PRODUCTION
    • Vegetables
    • Fruit
  • PROCESSING

© 2020-2024 VEGETABLES NEWS