This is the output of these warehouses that begins a course comparable to those of the automotive chains. A robot immersed apples in a tray, and then directs them to a carpet of flotation where they are rinsed and brushed the horsehair, until a camera scans, to assess their weight and appreciate their color. Sorted by calibre, they then circulate with a stream of warm air to dry and the chandelier. "Not as the"loukoum"American apples, that is astique to beeswax", insists Armand Prot, aware that such artifice to open some opportunities. Operators are then packaging after having examined their cheeks skin grain. "The machine is unable to perform this work." "Only the eye can detect the slightest imperfection," said Didier Douzamy, Director of the packaging station. This ultimate verification provides 100 wanted quality, at the cost of a loss of 5 to 6 of annual production.
Dreaded competition
"The excellence that obsession is the only way to resist foreign productions," says the owner of the Sennevières orchards. And the still wider palette of desserts available to consumers. Apple competes with industrial products, such as yoghurt and chocolate bars. "The French have the choice between 500 to 600 comforts at the end of meals. Dairy products are our first competitor. In addition, there is today with foreign producers. "The concern reads in the eyes of Armand Prot when he loose the word"globalization ". The imported volumes have exploded in 2005 and, in the spring of this year, French orchards are raw threatened by suppliers in the southern hemisphere: Chile, South Africa, New Zealand. Fridges of importers, still filled last autumn during the harvest in France, caused a catastrophic fall in the prices for everyone. The deal reversed this year. Poorly paid last year, deliveries were less massive and ended, leaving room for domestic production declining since 2003. It exceeded the 2 million tonnes until 2000. "French producers are paid more in this 2006 re-entry because we buy the Royal Gala 1 euro per kilo at the exit of the Orchard when we déboursions only 60 cents in October 2005," confirms Bernard Bourdon, head of group purchasing fruits and vegetables to Auchan. Good news for Armand Prot and his colleagues, that 85 of the apples consumed in France are French.
Continually renew the offer
With 750,000 tonnes, traffic producers were until 2004 the first world exporters, but this year, China has overwhelmed them by volume, by exporting 775.000 tonnes on an annual production of more than 20 million tonnes. "We would run at the top for thirty years." Tomorrow, we eat Chinese, Chilean, and Polish. "With production costs lower than ours, emerging countries can only accentuate the trend", Armand Prot is concerned, in the light of French exports declined in 2005 to 611.000 tons dans the wake of the decline in production. To fight at the international, it must constantly make new offers to its customers. "Carrefour appreciates our profile." "We are working together for fifteen years, and he wishes to remain a French pot". As long as there is. Indeed, "shakes the prices on standard products large distributors." "Fortunately, they respect our value added at the top of range," he says.
The orchards of Sennevières invest 250,000 euros per year to improve their working tool and developing unknown varieties in China: today, the grey Reinette of the Canada of the great Faye and Pink Gold, tomorrow, the Chantecler. We also buy trees. "An Apple does live only twelve years old." "It does not enough renew our plantations and we are moving towards a regression as the textile and wine sectors," regrets.
To strengthen its business, Armand Prot must work of imagination. He started new activities and opened 10 beds, under the label France deposits, "next to Mickey, Eurodisney Park". It organizes visits doors open orchards and fruit station to show and explain the know-how. He sold his "factory store" 40,000 litres per year of juice of its fruit, which brings him 60,000 euros, and it also sells vegetables and cheeses of neighbouring farmers. Not matter for him to relax his efforts: the globalization train travelling much too fast.
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