Thanks to the new ripening and distribution center, Dole Italia has improved the efficiency and control of the final part of the banana and pineapple chain. The new warehouse within the Italtrans logistic hub is located in Bergamo and an open day was organized for the press on 7th June 2019.
The hub is now Dole's main ripening and distribution center in Italy and operates alongside the new center in Rome located near CAR.
The facility covers 8,500 sq m and has a very good location as it is near the Brescia-Bergamo-Milano highway.
"Checking and sorting goods is our commitment towards consumers and a guarantee to meet and even exceed the highest international standards. Checking means assessing grades, weight, sugar content, appearance, skin lesions and color," explains Dole Italia quality manager Giovanni De Martino.
Dole's new hub features 5 storage units that can hold up to 1,500 pallets. As well as pineapples, bananas are also placed in the units - albeit only temporarily at a controlled temperature of approximately 13°C - before being placed in the 23 ripening units, which can hold around 2,100 pallets each.
"Bananas are harvested still green: units are constantly monitored by a management software and, thanks to ventilation and ethylene, the ripening process takes around 5 days. Fruits, which arrive green and with a hard flesh rich in starch, come out of the units perfectly ripe with yellow skin and a creamy, sugary flesh."
"At the packing station, the produce can undergo specific reprocessing activities such as for example packaging in trays and/or punnets (bananas) or in net bags (oranges)."
"Dole Italia once again renews its fundamental values - high-quality, transparency and responsibility. They have enabled Dole to continuously grow since its establishment in 1851 and to become one of the leading players on a global level," added marketing manager Cristina Bambini.
Contacts
Website: www.dole.it