Cherry Season: Producers Reveal Which Berries Are Accepted for Freezing

The Ukrainian Frozen Products Manufacturer Tevitta Has Started the Berry Season, with the First Batches of Cherries from the Company’s Own Orchards. Deliveries According to Contracts Are Expected Soon.

The acceptance period depends on both weather conditions and the cherry variety, so the product acceptance process can last up to a month. Valentyna Hulina, Head of the Standardization and Quality Department at Tevitta’s factory, shared details about the raw material acceptance for freezing.

“Cherries, like other berries, must be delivered in plastic crates — no more than 10 kg per crate. Since the acceptance of cherries, raspberries, and black currants occurs during the same period, the berries can be stored in the pre-cooling chamber. Raspberries are frozen in the static freezing chamber, which the plant launched this year. This ensures an uninterrupted intake of products from suppliers.”

The plant representative emphasizes that raw materials with pests or diseases are not accepted, and the maximum allowed level of rot on cherries is 1%. “This is why we have to reject suppliers from household farms. We work with producers who professionally grow orchards,” says Valentyna Hulina. Cherries can have stems, as the plant has special equipment to separate them. The cherries must also be of uniform ripeness:

“The berry, from which the pit will later be removed, must have a diameter of at least 20 mm. Smaller ones are frozen with pits.”

The Head of the Standardization and Quality Department at Tevitta’s factory notes that cherries are one of the most difficult berries to freeze due to the long technological process involved.