In Between the Bin and the Box

Maybe I’m an apple nerd, but there’s something about a fruit packing line in action that makes me smile.  A recent walk-through at Valicoff Fruit with Brett Valicoff was no different.  Especially now when the frozen outside world contrasts so sharply with the colorful fruit rolling its way down the line, it’s a relief to be reminded of the sun’s presence and prowess from the on-season.

The public has a unique relationship with apples.  We take them for granted but expect and rely on their presence.  Thanks to their ability to store well in controlled environments, we have access to them year round, which is a pretty amazing thing when you think about it.  Not boiled, processed or canned, not a pomme derivative, but an honest to God apple from the tree.

Pulled out of storage, packed up and sent out into the world all year round, that’s where I came in on a January day at Valicoff.  Brett and I enter just as another bin of Fuji’s is being unloaded to be washed and start their short journey to the bag or box that will bring it to the consumer.  In between the bin and the box there is an extraordinary amount of technology and organization occurring. In order to determine the quality of each individual apple, they are handled delicately while sent through a machine that photographs it 45 times in one second.  Based on a specific algorithm set for each apple type, a computer takes the information gleaned in those shots—color, shape, size, presence of blemishes—and makes a snap decision about how it should be graded and where it goes.  The humans have a little fun as well making tweaks here and there between the computer and quality control to get it just right for the specific batch that is running.

Walking on the floor beside the line where workers are packing the graded fruit up, it’s easy to see the similarity between the apples.  There is a uniformity in size and color that is very apparent at each grade level.  Really remarkable for the speed at which it is occurring.

Brett is quick to lend a hand anywhere he sees it’s needed as we move through the different areas.  He took over the line after it was upgraded in 2014.  It’s great to see everything running so smoothly and he says as much.  But he emphasizes that a lot of hard went into getting to this point.  It shows.

For more on Valicoff Fruit, check out the rooted story, Wanna Bite a Peach? from August 2016.