After Seeing a Perfect Apple, "This One Is Rotten"?A Surprising Discovery When Cut Open... What's the Secret? [FTA That Changed Agriculture] ③

From Sorting and Storage to Sales...
How the APC Enhances Fruit Competitiveness

"The 'Chungju Base Agricultural Products Distribution Center (APC),' established as part of domestic support measures for the Free Trade Agreement (FTA), is a fruit-specialized APC that washes, sorts, packages, and ships apples produced by 650 farms located in the northern region of North Chungcheong Province, including Danyang, Jecheon, Eumseong, and Goesan. The center manages apples from the production stage and enhances competitiveness through branding. By utilizing cold storage and sorting machines, it reduces costs, thereby providing higher profits to farms and supplying consumers with high-quality apples in a stable manner," said Lee Sangbok, Head of the Distribution Business Division at Chungbuk Horticultural Agricultural Cooperative's Chungju Base APC.

Rotten apples found through the sorter on the afternoon of the 2nd. Photo by Joo Sangdon

Rotten apples found through the sorter on the afternoon of the 2nd. Photo by Joo Sangdon

On the afternoon of December 2, I visited the 'Chungju Base APC,' the core of Chungju's apple distribution. Covering an area of 16,119 square meters, the APC is the largest fruit-specialized center in the country operated by the Chungbuk Horticultural Agricultural Cooperative, mainly handling apples and peaches.

On this day, the APC was in full swing with apple sorting operations. Starting at 8:30 a.m. and continuing until 3:00 p.m., a total of 2,484 boxes, each weighing 18 kg, were sorted at the APC. This amounts to over 44.7 tons of apples that were washed and sorted. When each farm sends its harvested apples to the APC, the center takes charge of washing, sorting, packaging, storage, and sales.

Lee Sangbok, Head of the Distribution Business Division at Chungju Base APC, explained, "While farms can earn the most profit by growing, harvesting, sorting, packaging, and selling apples themselves, it's not easy to do all of this. By using the APC, farms can save time and effort on post-harvest sorting, packaging, and transportation, allowing them to focus more on producing higher-quality apples."

The sorting process at the APC begins with washing the apples delivered by the farms. To improve work efficiency, farms ship their apples in yellow plastic boxes rented from the APC. Each box is affixed with a barcode containing information about the farm, shipment volume and timing, variety, and even pesticide usage.

Inside the 'Chungju Base APC' visited on the afternoon of the 2nd. The APC, covering an area of 16,119 square meters, is equipped with washing, sorting, packaging, and storage functions. Photo by Joo Sangdon

The apples in the boxes undergo a washing process before full-scale sorting. To prevent bruising that can occur when apples are poured onto a hard surface before entering the sorting line, they are first washed in a large tank filled with water and edible baking soda. After this, they are washed again with electrolyzed water made from refined salt and tap water. In total, the apples go through three rounds of washing.

The washed apples pass through moisture-absorbing rollers and are dried to about 70% before moving to the visual inspection station. Skilled staff visually inspect the apples for color and blemishes in the first round of sorting and record the results. This step is taken to identify any potential system errors by comparing the results with the final sorting outcome from the machine. An APC official explained, "In the past, staff would manually place apples one by one on rubber plates for visual inspection, but now the sorter automatically and accurately sorts them. Depending on the sorting results, the price difference between premium and standard grades can be up to twofold, so accurate sorting is crucial."

After visual inspection, the apples are lined up in four rows and pass through a weight sorter, defect detection system, and non-destructive optical sensors. Based on bruises, weight, color, and sugar content, the apples are sorted into 56 categories, with 16 cameras taking 160 photos in the process. The sorter can even detect apples that are rotten inside. When asked about seemingly perfect apples set aside, a staff member cut one open to reveal internal rot. This demonstrates that the sorter can identify defective apples that would have been sold to consumers if sorted manually. The 44.7 tons of apples sorted into grades A, B, and C (from premium to standard), second-grade (imperfect apples), and processing use are packaged in boxes or plastic bags for sale.

The reason the North Chungcheong APC could establish such a system is thanks to domestic support measures for the FTA. The North Chungcheong APC was built in 2008 with 24 billion won in support from the FTA-related project for establishing fruit base distribution centers, which began in 2005. In 2019, an additional 6.9 billion won was provided to expand the facilities. Through this, the APC now operates 12 cold storage units, two sorting lines, and a collection, sorting, and packaging facility. After the construction of the large-scale APC, sales increased significantly. Sales, which were between 17 billion and 20 billion won in 2018-2019, rose to 35.2 billion won in 2020 and 68.7 billion won in 2024.

Production Support: Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs · Korea Rural Economic Institute