In this age of fast goods procurement and year-round availability, efficient and accurate quality assurance is one of the main ingredients of market success. More and more import companies and suppliers of the food retailer are investing accordingly in their quality management department. So does the company Global Fruit Point GmbH, based in Buxtehude: At this time, the company has three employees who are working full-time on this issue, as department head Thies Claußen explains. In addition, there are six colleagues of the subsidiary in Rotterdam, plus various service providers. 
Quality Manager Thies Claußen of Global Fruit Point GmbH
Sustainability in today's era
Sustainability is an important topic for Global Fruit Point. The long-term goal of the company is that future generations can also rely on delicious, healthy fruit. The constant quality of the goods should be ensured continuously. "The issue of quality assurance could, in my opinion, be divided into three pillars: certification (eg hygiene and G.A.P.), classical quality control and food safety - always against a political background. In order to cover every single area, we promise the cooperation with only certified producers / exporters, regular laboratory tests in recognized laboratories and an absolute traceability of the production route," explains Claußen.
According to Claußen, awareness is already everywhere within the (import) trade, because topics like sustainability and environmental protection are currently on everyone's lips. The corresponding requirements on the side of the food retailing are indeed achievable, but challenging, explains Claußen. "The question now is: how sustainable does the trade require things to be? Some LEH specifications have not been updated for some time. In the meantime, however, the analytical technology has evolved so that the laboratories can detect even the very smallest residues that they were unable to detect a few years ago. According to the specifications, however, every amount of residues found counts, no matter how high or low its concentration. It is also important to note that producers often have their backs against the wall due to the constant shortage of water resources."
The booth of Global Fruit Point at this year's Fruit Logistica
Closed cold chain & comprehensive controls
In this context, in addition to production, transport must be 100% reliable as well. After the harvest, the fruits are sorted, packed, transported by truck to the seaport (or, less frequently, to the airport) and shipped to Europe. During the whole process of cultivation, harvesting, transport and storage, constant checks are carried out. Still in the port, incoming shipments are quality-checked and the results are documented. Claußen: "These tasks are taken on by our subsidiary Global Fruit Point Services B.V. and other independent quality controllers on site, usually in the port of Rotterdam. Before shipment to our customers, a comprehensive exit check takes place."
Another factor in quality management is the cooperation with independent food laboratories. The corresponding laboratory partners are selected according to the following criteria: Top-level technical equipment, accreditation to ISO / IEC 17025 (worldwide standard for laboratory accreditation), and listing in control elements such as QS or Relana.
Mediation between producer and trade
The company is constantly expanding and new overseas products are regularly added to the product range. "However, we still see ourselves primarily as a link between producer and retail chain and attach great importance to a close, transparent cooperation in both directions." Here, the strict adherence to the quality criteria by the producers is respected. Claussen: "If there is no transparency with an overseas supplier, we are refraining from a further partnership. That's why every single supplier is inspected on site at least every two years."
Global Fruit Point GmbH
Bahnhofstraße 45
D-21614 Buxtehude
Tel: +49 41617488831
Fax: +49 4161 / 74888-55
E-mail: Thies.Claussen@frupo.de
www.frupo.de