SUPPLY CHAIN ​​PROJECT

“Together in Europe with a quality product”

The organized supply chain project called "Together in Europe with a quality product" promotes the "Enhancement of horticultural products subjected to organic or integrated production systems".
The production sector on which the organized supply chain project is based is the horticultural sector. The lead partner is the company “Cortese Società Cooperativa Agricola”.
Multiple direct participants and no indirect participants signed up to the supply chain agreement.
The subjects are divided into:

  • participants who operate in the transformation/marketing sector located in the municipalities of Terracina, Sabaudia and Nettuno
  • primary producers located in the municipalities of Sabaudia, Terracina, Fondi, Latina and Nettuno

The critical issues in the supply chain can therefore be traced back to:

  • for primary producers, the exclusive production of vegetables grown with conventional systems in simple structures (greenhouses and arches) which, also due to the changed climatic conditions, do not allow production with continuity and with the quality required by the market with consequent loss of value for the same;
  • for processing plants, the high concentration of sales based on large volumes of conventional product easily replaceable with that of other production areas located both in Italy (Caserta and Salerno) and abroad (Greece and Turkey for watermelon) .

The objectives of the supply chain project are therefore the following:

  • Improve the competitiveness of primary producers by better integrating them into the agri-food supply chain through quality schemes and the creation of added value for agricultural products;
  • Encourage the implementation of interventions in primary production, in the transformation and marketing of products with the aim of standardizing production on defined quality standards and planning quantities according to market demand;
  • Overcoming obstacles at the individual business level.

The supply chain aims to achieve the aforementioned objectives through the following interventions which will allow the critical issues of the supply chain to be overcome:

  • Adopt certified organic and/or integrated production systems that allow the product to be enhanced with the consequent need to adapt the product production and processing systems;
  • Internationalization of sales using online commercial channels (web platforms) complementary to the Organized Distribution channel.

 

PROJECT'S FOCUS

The focus of the project is the fruit and vegetable supply chain which with a turnover of over 180 million in 2018 represents the most important supply chain in the regional agricultural sector and for this reason is the subject of important conferences and round tables attended by Councilor Enrica Onorati and the president of Arsial Antonio Rosati, such as "Fruit and vegetables in Lazio: the network that creates value" (Circeo National Park 19.09.19) and "Fruit and vegetables in Lazio" (Fondi 15.01.2020) to whose documents published online please refer for further information on the topic. The area affected by the supply chain project falls within the "Fruit and Vegetable Quality Agri-Food District" and the project initiatives proposed here can be traced back to the strategies and objectives that constitute the district plan, which aims to valorise quality production, enhancing the correlations between agricultural products and the territory, supporting the concentration of supply and promoting economic development.

The ability to aggregate multiple ideas and/or projects (cut salad sold loose and packaged; radishes sold loose and packaged; classic and baby watermelons calibrated, brushed, marked with a sticker and packaged in boxes; weed plants for food use; packaged basil in flow-pack) for the pursuit of a common goal between the companies in the supply chain (diversification and valorisation with recognized quality systems of company products for agricultural producers with consequent increase in company income) it is therefore the main objective of the proposed supply chain project.

In essence the project is based on mutual necessity:

  • For basic agricultural producers to diversify horticultural production through the adoption of organic and/or integrated production systems and the consequent need to equip themselves with suitable production structures also to deseasonalize crops (watermelon and early melon with the use of thermal screens and emergency heating; cutting salad and radishes in the summer with the use of shading screens);
  • The processing plant to optimize the working capacity of its plants, with consequent reduction in processing costs, and to satisfy the demand for new products with added services (first range processed products, traceability, quality certifications) by the Organized Distribution . Objectives achievable through advance planning of crops (aimed at lengthening cultivation periods and avoiding excesses or lack of raw materials), control activities in the field and in the factory (quality certification), diversification and increase in product quantities.

The supply chain project was therefore a catalyst for ideas that otherwise would not have had a concrete possibility of transforming into development projects for the participating companies of which, we believe it is important to underline, over 95% are not associated with the Cooperative of the lead partner. The proposed project was not "built" within the Cooperativa Cortese but aggregated projects from external entities sharing the same critical issues.

The supply chain project, as reported in the previous chapter, has among its objectives that of improving the competitiveness of primary producers through integration into a broader project and the valorisation of company products through the adoption of production systems organic and/or integrated and their transformation into "first range processed products" or their processing (calibration, brushing, stamping and packaging) for sale on the foreign market (internationalisation).