Quality Control Company fro the Fresh Produce Industry
INTRODUCTION
PROKON is a Section 21 Company doing product control on Fresh Produce Markets and the mission of PROKON is to render a complete and cost effective quality assurance, product management and grading service to the South African fresh produce industry, including the establishment and maintenance of efficient information systems, grading information programs and problem solving networks.
INSPECTION SERVICES
The National Agricultural Marketing Council (NAMC) conducted a study that identified quality control as a problem on Fresh Produce Markets. Furthermore the Institute of market Agents of SA also expressed their concern about quality standards with regard to produce sold at Fresh Produce Markets in order to ensure buyer confidence, maintenance of standards and competitiveness. The NAMC also established a need for a co-ordinating mechanism to address food safety and traceability requirements and to enforce the implementation of regulations regarding quality standards.
SOME BENEFITS OF AN INDEPENDENT QUALITY ASSURANCE SERVICE TO THE DIFFERENT INDUSTRIES
There are numerous benefits of an independent Quality Assurance service to the different industries of which some are:
• Sharing the cost of a separate independent inspection service that would be otherwise unaffordable if rendered to only one industry
• Providing Quality Assurance that is an essential part of an information system
• Delivering detailed information feedback per class, size group or container size (in order to ensure better planning and management by all role players in the fresh produce industry)
• Feedback of information to the industries regarding the condition of produce that arrive at the market. This information can also be used to evaluate problem areas, evaluate future research areas, assists with the tracing of new diseases, evaluate farmers, evaluate new storage/packaging and benefits researchers to identify the spreading of pests and diseases
THE ROLE PROKON IS CURRENTLY PLAYING
PROKON'S mission is to render a complete independent and cost-effective quality assurance product management and grading service to the South African fresh produce industry. The Company is currently employing 23 inspectors that operates at 16 Fresh Produce Markets in South Africa and the inspection service conducted by PROKON is an extended service that plays a role regarding quality control as well as food safety. Rendering quality control services by PROKON proves beneficial to all role players in the particular industry, namely the producer, the market and market agent as well as the buyer or consumer.