New technology contributes to strong season for Jack Brown
New technology contributes to strong season for Jack Brown
Going into the fall, Jack Brown Produce, Inc., finished a technology upgrade that allowed the firm to scan 100 percent of its graded apples for internal defects.
John Schaefer, Jr., president, of Jack Brown Produce, Inc. stands before new apple packing lines at the firm’s Sparta, MI, facility. Such scanning is especially important for the Honeycrisp variety, “which can tend to be a little problematic at times. But, all of our Honeycrisp this year have had no internal problems.”
Still, he said, the full scanning technology “has worked out very well this year. We’re very pleased.”
This upgrade, of course, took Jack Brown’s quality control to the highest level and has been a factor in a very successful marketing effort for the 2015 crop, according to John Schaefer, Jr., president of the firm located in Sparta, MI.
“The apple season is going very well,” Schaefer said on Dec. 18. “Sales are a little above what we expected. The quality we have is excellent. Prices are great. We have a nice crop this year, particularly with Honeycrisp, Gala and Fuji. They are all above expectations. The quality is very nice this year.”
Schaefer expected Jack Brown’s shipping volume to enter its typical seasonal slowdown in late May. The firm anticipates finishing this deal in early July.