The statistics of our success

The statistics of our success

Cultivation area

The areas where VOG apples are grown are in heart of the South Tyrol: 10,800 hectares cultivated by 5,200 fruit growers,

which could be called “the largest orchard in Europe”.

The altitude of the orchards ranges from 220 metres a.s.l. at Salorno, at the valley floor of the Bassa Atesina, to 1,000 metres

a.s.l. in the hill and mountain areas of the Burgraviato. Another growing area, belonging to VOG, is the Val d’Isarco.

This is a veritable apple paradise thanks to the ideal climatic conditions, with 300 days of sun per year which, together with

the extraordinary quality of the soil, allow the trees vigorous growth and give excellent fruit ripening.

VOG production statistics

The average production output of the VOG consortium is over half a million tonnes of apples, which represents almost a third of the

entire Italian harvest and roughly 6% of the European harvest.

The percentages refer to a total of approx. 600,000 tonnes of apples.

The percentages refer to a total of approx. 21,000 tonnes of apples.

Rubens® 0,2 %

Modì® 0,2 %

Jazz® 1 %

Kanzi® 1 %

Winesap 1 %

Others 1,5 %

Morgenduft 2 %

Pink Lady® 5 %

Fuji 9 %

Granny Smith 9 %

Braeburn 12 %Red Del. 11 %

Gala 20 %

Golden Del. 27 %

Idared 1 %

Others 1 %

Gold Rush 1 %

Granny Smith 3 %

Topaz 3 %

Pinova Roho 4 %

Red Del. 3 %

Fuji 5 %

Golden Del. 11 %

Braeburn 21 %

Gala 35 %

Table apples

Table apples grown by organic methods

Nicoter / Kanzi® 1 %

Cripps Pink / Pink Lady® 11 %

VOG organisation

VOG is the Consortium of South Tyrolean Fruit Growers’ Cooperatives. Since 1945, the year in which it was founded,

it has grown to become Europe’s leading commercial organisation. The centralised quality control system ensures unique guidelines

throughout the growing, quality control, marketing, sales and logistics phases that promote the presence of apples from the South

Tyrol on markets the whole world over.

Since 2010 the VOG consortium has coordinated the entire sales process and invoicing takes place centrally. The 17 cooperatives are

grouped into 4 pools: Pool Meran, Pool Bozen West, Pool Bozen Süd and Pool Unterland. The managers of the coopera-

tives are directly responsible for sales, with an accurate identification of the markets and customers to be pursued.

The organically grown products continue to be commercialised through the Bio Südtirol cooperative and for the club varieties–

such as Pink Lady®, Rubens®, Kanzi®, Modì® and Jazz®– the point of reference is still the sales office of the VOG consortium, with its

headquarters at Terlano.

The aim of this organisation is to improve the efficiency of services, reduce costs and harmonise the quality standards of the pro-

ducts sent to market, so that customers will be satisfied to an even greater extent.

The Terlano headquarters

VOG CEO

Gerhard Dichgans

Responsible for strategic development

and marketing

tel. +39 0471 256 700

e-mail: [email protected]

VOG Chairman

Georg Kössler

tel. +39 0471 256 700


The VOG team

Sales

Head of department: Dietmar Pircher

tel. +39 0471 256 601, [email protected]

Administration

Head of department: Helmut Gruber


Reception

Gerdi Waldner


Quality Management

Head of department: Sabine Öttl


PR, Head of department: Sabine Oberhollenzer


Marketing, Head of department: Kurt Ratschiller


05 17

08 10

1209

06

07

01

02 0304

Pool Meran

Pool Bozen West

Pool Unterland

Pool Bozen Süd

Innichen

BRUNECK

STERZING

KlaUSEN

BRIxENMERaN

Terlan

Reschen

BOZEN

Brenner

13

14

1615

Salurn

11

The 4 pools

Since August 2010 the 17 member fruit growers’ cooperatives

have been grouped into 4 pools: Pool Meran, Pool Bozen West,

Pool Bozen Süd and Pool Unterland.

The 4 pools all work according to the same rules of product

assignment, classification and selection.

The aim of the individual cooperatives is correct and

efficient management in the different phases of production and

processing of products, such as storage, grading and packaging.

In addition they continue to be the direct point of contact for

the growers.

Pool Meran Pool Bozen West

01 COOP. LAGUnDO, Lagundo

02 COOP. COfRUM, Marlengo

03 COOP. CAfA MERAnO, Merano

04 COOP. LAnA, Lana

05 COOP. LAnAfRUIT, Lana

06 COOP. MELIx BRESSAnOnE, Varna

07 COOP. fRUCHTHOf ÜBERETSCH, frangarto

08 fRUBOnA COOP. TERLAnO, Settequerce

09 COOP. SACRA, Appiano

Total number of apples harvested: 247,000 tonnes.

Managers responsible for sales



Egon Zuech, tel. +39 335 600 94 47, [email protected]

Hans Gamper, tel. +39 335 708 80 11, [email protected]

andreas alber, tel. +39 335 703 52 75, [email protected]

Stephan Thaler, tel. +39 335 592 56 38, [email protected]

Stefan Vorhauser, tel. +39 335 265 553, [email protected]

Stefan Mittermair, tel. +39 348 388 74 66, [email protected]

luis Geiser, tel. +39 335 691 44 00, [email protected]

Daniel Frötscher, tel. +39 335 729 99 65, [email protected]

The Bio Südtirol cooperative is one of the largest fruit

growers‘ associations at the European level specialising in

the organic production of apples according to standard

CE 834/2007 of 28 June 2008.

The cooperative is made up of 174 members, who grow

organic apples and pears over an area of 700 hectares.

The vast assortment numbers over 30 varieties, the major-

ity of which are Golden Delicious, Royal Gala, Braeburn and

Red Delicious. Other varieties are: Pink Lady®, Kanzi®, fuji,

Jonagold, Morgenduft, Granny Smith, Elstar, Stayman, Wine-

sap, Jonathan, Idared, Gloster, Rubens, Summered, Topaz,

Gold Rush, Pilot, Sansa, florina and Delorina.

The growers themselves have established the rule that each

individual grower must belong to an organic farming associa-

tion (AIAB, Bioland, Demeter, Gäa) accredited by IfOAM

(the world representative body made up of the individual

European national and non-EEC associations). The Bio Süd-

tirol cooperative is also partly accredited with „BIO SUISSE“

(Switzerland) and KRAV (Sweden).

The cooperative and all the individual fruit growers, apart

from those with AIAB or Demeter accreditation, are subject

to inspections by AbCert GmbH of Augsburg, Germany.

Martin Egger, tel. +39 335 708 33 03, [email protected]

Manfred Schweitzer, tel. +39 335 708 44 99,

[email protected]

Richard Pichler, tel. +39 335 615 49 15,

[email protected]

10 COOP. DODICIVILLE, Bolzano

11 COOP. GRUfRUT-GROUP, Pineta

12 COOP. KAISER ALExAnDER, Laives

13 COOP. nEUfRUCHT, Egna

14 COOP. EGMA CALDARO, Caldaro

15 COOP. EOfRUT, Termeno

16 COOP. KURMARK-UnIfRUT, Magré

Pool Bozen Süd Pool Unterland

luis Codalonga, tel. +39 335 787 67 81,

[email protected]

Thomas Werth, tel. +39 335 833 82 00,

[email protected]

Walter Thaler, tel. +39 335 603 00 55, [email protected]

Walter Steinegger, tel. +39 335 787 67 77,

[email protected]

Markus Mair, tel. +39 335 662 99 72, [email protected]





17 COOP. BIO SUEDTIROL, Lana

Manager responsible for sales

Dietmar Franzelin

tel. +39 335 520 65 87



Bio Südtirol

Apple varieties

Care in creating the ideal conditions for the cultivation of each single variety ensures that apples are produced which stand out for the uniqueness of their aroma and quality. This means that in the vast assortment there will always be the right apple for all tastes and needs.

JONAGOLD

Taste: Juicy, sweet yet slightly acidic, very aromaticOrigin: Golden Delicious x Jonathan, 1953Harvest: Mid-SeptemberAvailability: Mid -September to June

WINESAP

Taste: Crispy, extremely juicy, sweet and very finely acidicOrigin: Random seedling from Winter Winesap, 1875Harvest: Early/mid-OctoberAvailability: Early/mid-October to May

IDARED

Taste: Mild and finely acidic, crunchy, very juicy and freshOrigin: Jonathan x Wagner, 1935Harvest: End of SeptemberAvailability: End of September to June

GOLDEN DELICIOUS

Taste: Juicy, sweet aroma with fine fruit acidOrigin: Random seedling around 1890Harvest: Mid-SeptemberAvailability: Mid-September to July

NICOTER (COV) / KANZI®

Taste: Juicy flesh with a pleasant balance of sweetness and acidityOrigin: Gala x Braeburn, 2006Harvest: Mid-SeptemberAvailability: Mid-September to July

CRIPPS PINK (COV) /

PINK LADY®

Taste: Juicy, crunchy with a fruity taste and slightly acidic, high sugar contentOrigin: Lady William’s x Golden Delicious, 1973Harvest: End of OctoberAvailability: End of October to May

CIVNI (COV) / RUBENS®

Taste: Aromatic, fresh and sweet yet slightly acidicOrigin: Gala x Elstar, 1985Harvest: End of AugustAvailability: End of August to March

Club varieties:

BRAEBURN

Taste: Juicy, crunchy with a firm fruit flesh, a pleasant balance of sweetness and acidityOrigin: Random seedling from Lady Hamilton, 1952Harvest: Start of OctoberAvailability: Start of October to end of May

ROYAL GALA

Taste: Low acidity, sweet aroma, crunchyOrigin: Kidd’s Orange x Golden DeliciousHarvest: Mid-AugustAvailability: Mid-August to mid-March

GRANNY SMITH

Taste: fresh, juicy, with an acid tang and firm fleshOrigin: Random seedling, 1868Harvest: Early OctoberAvailability: beginning of October to mid-June

MORGENDUFT

Taste: fresh, firm flesh and sweetly acidicOrigin: Mutation of Rome Beauty, 1816Harvest: Mid-OctoberAvailability: Mid-October to June

STARK DELICIOUS

Taste: Crispy, juicy, and sweet with an aroma typical of this varietyOrigin: Mutation of the Delicious variety, 1921Harvest: Early/mid-SeptemberAvailability: Early/mid-September to May

FUJI

Taste: Aromatic, crunchy, juicy with a high fruit sugar contentOrigin: Rall’s Janet x Delicious, 1939Harvest: Early/mid -OctoberAvailability: October to May

CIVG198 / MODì®

Taste: Juicy, sweet, and crispyOrigin: Liberty x GalaHarvest: Early/mid-SeptemberAvailability: October to March

SCIFRESH / JAZZ®

Taste: Compact, aromatic and crispyOrigin: Gala x BraeburnHarvest: OctoberAvailability: October to April

logo jazz

The basic factors of this success have mainly been the high

quality of the product, but also the strong emphasis on

customer satisfaction, with the development of ever more

efficient services. In addition, the brands and image have been

boosted through an intense PR campaign, with promotional

activities taking place at national and international levels.

VOG commercialises branded apples guaranteeing the highest

quality standards. The assortment ranges from the Südtiroler

Apfel g.g.A.® and Marlene® brand names up to the sale of

club varieties: Pink Lady®, Rubens®, Kanzi®, Modì® and Jazz®.

The offer is completed by organically grown apples, namely

BioSüdtirol® and Marlene Bio®.

Showing strong attention to market developments, VOG has gradually adopted sales and marketing strategies which have allowed it to raise the apples of South Tyrol to a high level of popularity throughout Europe, present in over 26 countries.

Commercialisation

Marlene®

The Marlene® brand began in 1995, on the initiative of the VOG, consortium to

communicate in a unified way the rich variety and the quality of the apples grown;

since then it has become the reference brand for the Italian market. The success of

the brand lies exactly in the values that it represents, such as the strong bond with

the territory, the variety of the products and the high quality standards. In 2007, the

Marlene® brand debuted in Spain, taking beyond the Pyrenees all the zest and taste

of the apples harvested in South Tyrol by the VOG consortium.

Club Varieties Organic products

Südtiroler Apfel g.g.A.As early as the 70’s VOG and the local institutions felt the need to give their

growers an identity. This is why, in 1976, the “Südtirol” brand was created, subse-

quently accompanied by the ladybird logo, to distinguish the apples produced in

South Tyrol according to the integrated production method. Since 2006 the link

between the promise of the brand and the origin of the fruit has been reinforced

by European recognition as “Mela Alto Adige IGP/Südtiroler Apfel g.g.A.”, which

accompanies no less that 11 varieties of apples from South Tyrol.

Integrated production

Our growers in South Tyrol have been using integrated produc-

tion methods since as early as 1989, thereby guaranteeing the

authenticity of the product and, at the same time, respect for the

environment. In integrated production, to control harmful insects

other predatory insects, which feed on them are used almost

exclusively, as well as other natural techniques; while the use of

chemical agents is kept down to the absolute minimum and is

the exception. The production and working process involves the

traceability of the product and takes place in accordance with

food health and safety standards. To guarantee conformity with

all the criteria and the quality of the product, strict controls are

carried out by independent bodies (AGRIOS, the work group for

integrated fruit growing in South Tyrol).

The Quality Management System is based on ISO 9001:2008.

VOG is certified under ISO and all the cooperatives are certified

under ISO, IfS and BRC. In 2003 the VOG association achieved

for the first time GLOBALG.A.P standard accreditation in option

2 with 160 growers. In 2011, 4,197 growers were accredited rep-

resenting 93% of the area. More than 30 internal inspectors work

for VOG and the member cooperatives.

The fruit growers receive a series of easily applied guidelines on

Good farming Practice, along with the necessary support for

understanding them and putting them into practice, provided by

30 internal inspectors working for VOG and for the individual

cooperatives. This has allowed them to make steady progress year

after year.

One big advantage for VOG, for the fruit growers and for the

consumer is the possibility of obtaining Group GLOBALG.A.P

accreditation; individual accreditation for each private owner

would in fact be neither feasible nor useful in this case. A strict

and coherent system of quality management together with the

collaboration of different organisations ensures that each grower

complies with the requirements of the standard. The result: a

system that works to perfection and which guarantees maximum

product safety for the consumer.

Growing techniques

To preserve their organoleptic qualities, our apples come from integrated or organic crops only. Both techniques are subject to

severe controls to ensure the safety of the production method and the quality of the final product.

Organic production

Some of our apples are grown using organic methods. This

type of growing technique takes the whole agricultural eco-

system into consideration, exploits the soil’s natural fertility,

encouraging it with limited intervention, fosters the biodiver-

sity of the surrounding environment and excludes the use of

synthetic products.

To ensure quality of the product and of the organic growing

methods there are strict European guidelines (EC directive

no. 834/2007 regarding organic production and the labelling

of organic products).

Observance of the guidelines and production criteria is en-

sured by numerous inspections carried out by accredited and

independent bodies.

Certification

The VOG quality control system

Traceability• Database with complete information on orchard cultivation

• Batch number assigned to the delivery note

• Labelling of all containers to guarantee identification during the

processing cycle

• Product sorting protocol

• Connection to the results of company inspections and control

of records

Sorting• Sorting/grading program

• Standard guidelines for product classification and labelling

• Labelling after sorting with data taken from the delivery note to

guarantee traceability

• Sorting protocol with quality and grade classes

Packing and dispatch• Selection of quality according to the specifications of each order

in conformity with the applicable standards or the customer‘s

specific technical requirements

• Outgoing traceability with packaging date, batch number or

reference code

• Controls on the conformity of the internal and external quality

parameters with the specifications requested

• final inspection of products and packaging to determine conform-

ity with the marketing standards, with the brand usage regulations

and/or the certification standard

Spring• Renewal of orchards, planting high quality fruit trees• Application of nutrients to maintain productivity of the orchards• Placement of artificial nests and lairs to encourage insect-eating birds and small animals to take up residence in the orchards• Protection of buds and/or fruits from late frosts with overhead irrigation• Protection of trees and fruits from fungus infestations and harmful insects• Application of pheromone dispensers (approx. 1,000 per hectare) for the mating disruption of harmful insects and to prevent larvae reproduction

Activities of the 5,200 VOG fruit growers during the four seasons of the year

• Control of insect flight to determine the intervention threshold (damage) and the ideal period for use of pesticides• Control of aphids• Manual thinning of poor quality or excess fruits • Maintenance of rows and area between rows• Participation in meetings on site for continual training

The VOG quality control system

Cultivation• Compliance with AGRIOS guidelines for integrated production:

- Selection of apple varieties suitable for the geographic area- Concern for maximum food safety- Pesticides chosen from the list of active ingredients permitted for use in orchards- List updated following legal amendments and/or at the customer‘s request- Recording of each use of pesticides and fertilisers- Control of the companies, their cultivation areas, licences and records

• Compliance with AGRIOS guidelines on running agricultural enterprises is the basis

for participation in IGP and GLOBALG.A.P certification.

• Cadastral surveys of orchards

• Competent technical advice

Delivery and storage• Visual inspections of the harvest on taking delivery

• Labelling of each bin to guarantee product traceability- Grower- Orchard- Variety

• Sampling for analysis of pesticide residue. Risk analysis based on the

monitoring report

• Evaluation of internal quality parameters

• Allocation of the optimal cell (climate conditioned) for storage (short,

medium or long term)

Harvesting• Identification of optimum harvesting window based on

ripeness analysis

• Tests for ripeness with evaluation of internal values- Level of starch reduction into sugar- Sugar- Acid- fruit flesh consistency

• Guidelines for harvesting and delivery

• Compliance with hygiene parameters

• Careful hand-picked harvesting

Activities of the 5,200 VOG fruit growers during the four seasons of the yearSummer• Manual thinning• Maintenance of rows and area between rows• Irrigation in the absence of natural rainfall• Summer pruning• Participation in meetings on site for continual training• Evaluation of the level of fruit ripeness• Harvest of summer and pre-autumn ripening varieties (Gala, Rubens, Red Delicious and Golden Delicious)

Autumn• Maintenance of rows and area between rows• Evaluation of the level of fruit ripeness• Harvest of autumn ripening varieties (Braeburn, Jonagold, Granny Smith, fuji, Winesap, Morgenduft, Cripps Pink and Pink Lady)• Replacement of old and/or non-productive orchards• Placement of bait to combat field mice

Winter• Tree pruning• Professional training updating• Participation in industry conferences

- Delivery date- Production method- Quality (harvest method…)

The standard packaging

MINI-BABY CARTON

W 23 / L 40 / H 9 cm

ca. 2.2 kg net weight

EUROPALLET 80 x 120 cm

base 10 x 20 = 200 units

BABY CARTON

W 30 / L 40 / H 9 cm

ca. 3 kg net weight

PALLET 100 x 120 cm




1 LAYER CARTON

W 30 / L 50 / H 10 cm

ca. 4.0 - 4.5 kg net weight

PALLET 100 x 120 cm




2 LAYER CARTON

W 30 / L 50 / H 17 cm

ca. 8.0 - 8.5 net weight

PALLET 100 x 120 cm




1 LAYER CARTON

W 40 / L 60 / H 11 cm

ca. 6.5 - 7.0 kg net weight

PALLET 100 x 120 cm




2 LAYER CARTON

W 40 / L 60 / H 18 cm

ca. 12 - 14 kg net weight

PALLET 100 x 120 cm




WOOD AND

CARDBOARD BOX

W 30 / L 50 / H 27 cm


PALLET 100 x 120 cmbase 8 x 8 = 64 unitsEUROPALLET 80 x 120 cmbase 6 x 8 = 48 units

EUROCARTON

W 40 / L 60 / H 28 cm

for: bags / foodtainers / nets


PALLET 100 x 120 cm




TRAYPACK / BUSHEL

CARTON

W 32 / L 52 / H 32 cm

ca. 18 kg net weight

PALLET



We can also provide different packaging formats for our

organically grown table apples.

We can also provide different packaging formats for our club

variety table apples.

For more information contact our

sales office:

tel. +39 0471 256 600, e-mail: [email protected]

For more information contact our Bio Südtirol

cooperative: tel. +39 0473 550 200,


Authorized distributor:

Via Jakobi 1/A, I-39018 Terlano (Südtirol), Tel. +39 0471 256 700, Fax +39 0471 256 699, e-mail: [email protected], www.vog.it

Documents

The statistics of our success