Growers & Packing

We pack apples for a collection of orchards in the Northeast and aid them in their own packing operations with assistance in Integrated Pest Management, Food Safety and quality control. Each operation is supported by a dedicated quality control manager with decades of grower to retailer service.

Benefits for growers

Working with a marketer and packer allows apple growers to do what they know best – grow outstanding apples. We focus on securing storage space, transportation and sales. Utilizing JP Sullivan, growers are able to pool their apples making it more economical to provide volume to grocers. We handle the work post harvest and maintain relationships with grocers, wholesalers, food service and retailers – knowing the individual specifications required, streamlining the minutiae on both ends.

For many orchards it is tough to pack, store and ship the entire crop, all while running an orchard simultaneously. And more than ever retailers continue to look to streamline how many suppliers they utilize to be more efficient. We strive to alleviate much of the stress a grower faces during the harvest.

John Iannacci, our Quality Control manager, visits growers and other small packing houses regularly to evaluate the packout quality and to ensure that food safety measures are followed in the orchards and storages. We encourage Good Agricultural Practices (GAP) and ensure all the packing operations are in line with the all codes and guidelines required for certification.

Safe
Awareness has risen in the wake of food-borne illness outbreaks in the agricultural and meatpacking industries. Our packinghouse is inspected yearly by a third party auditor to ensure that we follow all required rules and regulations to prevent contamination. Areas of concern are general cleanliness of the facility and packing equipment, proper workers’ sanitation, updated cleaning and maintenance logs, and safe handling techniques.
Certified
J.P. Sullivan is a leader in the field with private (SCS) and federal (USDA GAP) certifications which allow for export in the United Kingdom and Canada, and distribution to major supermarkets at home. J.P. Sullivan meets all the standards necessary to pack and distribute produce domestically and abroad.
Traceable
Traceability, to track an apple from the orchard to the store shelf, is a provision that allows us to account for our product and its safety. Each box we pack is encoded with a serial number identifying the grower, the pack date, the orchard block it came from, all the information needed to trace the apple back to our packinghouse on that date in case of a recall or concern. This technology will significantly reduce and help identify any outbreak or contamination, and quick enough to contain any contaminated fruit before it is put on the shelves.
Z

Safe

Awareness has risen in the wake of food-borne illness outbreaks in the agricultural and meatpacking industries. Our packinghouse is inspected yearly by a third party auditor to ensure that we follow all required rules and regulations to prevent contamination. Areas of concern are general cleanliness of the facility and packing equipment, proper workers’ sanitation, updated cleaning and maintenance logs, and safe handling techniques.

Z

Certified

J.P. Sullivan is a leader in the field with private (SCS) and federal (USDA GAP) certifications which allow for export in the United Kingdom and Canada, and distribution to major supermarkets at home.

J.P. Sullivan meets all the standards necessary to pack and distribute produce domestically and abroad.

Z

Traceable

Traceability, to track an apple from the orchard to the store shelf, is a provision that allows us to account for our product and its safety. Each box we pack is encoded with a serial number identifying the grower, the pack date, the orchard block it came from, all the information needed to trace the apple back to our packinghouse on that date in case of a recall or concern. This technology will significantly reduce and help identify any outbreak or contamination, and quick enough to contain any contaminated fruit before it is put on the shelves.

Westward Orchards

Harvest time in Harvard, MA. Fall 2012.

Sentinel Pine Orchards

Sentinel Pine Orchards in Shoreham, VT. Summer 2012.

Cooper Farms

Pre-Harvest in West Paris, ME. Summer 2012.

Blue Hills Orchard

Pre-Harvest in Wallingford, CT. Summer 2012.

Rocky Knoll Farm

Fairview Orchard

Green Mountain Orchards