With consumers increasingly interested in where the ingredients in their baked goods are sourced – and willing to pay extra for provenance – bakers need to ensure their field to fork traceability for fruit is reliable and quality-driven.
‘Apple-tising’ products drive bakery sales. Recent consumer research shows 63% of UK consumers associate apples with healthier patisserie options [Puratos], making apple-based products essential for meeting health-conscious demand. But consumers want more than a health halo from their apple turnovers and tarts. People increasingly want to know where the fruit they’re eating comes from, expecting more than generic ingredients from unknown sources. In fact, 71% of consumers consider traceability important enough to pay a premium for and 56% want QR code access to ingredient origins [GS1 UK].
Yet fruit supply chains don’t always offer the level of visibility that manufacturers need to communicate effective origin stories to discerning consumers, or to manage quality variations to ensure consistent taste profiles. This is creating an exciting opportunity for forward-thinking food manufacturers working with apple ingredient companies going back to nature.
Consumer trends are creating additional momentum in traceable foods. Research shows willingness to pay for food traceability has reached a price premium of around 32%, with a steady upward trend over time [Food Policy 2024]. As a result, food manufacturers with transparent supply chains have a competitive advantage in premium segments.
Solving the apple sourcing challenge
Traditional apple sourcing may provide limited advance warning of quality shifts, forcing reactive responses when proactive planning would be more effective. The seasonal nature of apple harvest compounds these challenges with any quality variation affecting production for months.
Real apple traceability transforms these challenges into competitive advantages. At Puratos Fourayes’ 100-acre Kent orchard, complete apple traceability from orchard to finished ingredient enables better apple fillings that add bursts of tasty goodness to your baked goods.
It all starts in the orchard, which is nestled amid Kent’s rolling hills, Red Tractor certified, pollinated by two million bees, with all apples hand-picked when they reach optimal maturity. “We know where each apple comes from, down to the specific row within our 60,000-tree orchard,” says Lisa Kerr, senior marketing manager at Puratos UK. “This means that when apple characteristics vary, traceable systems identify exact causes – specific orchard blocks, harvest conditions or processing batches – with precision to support targeted quality improvements and more consistent results.
“This detailed knowledge extends beyond the orchard,” she adds. “All apples are immediately stored on-site in dynamically controlled atmosphere (DCA) facilities that preserve each apple’s just-picked profile for 13 months, without the use of chemicals. The apples are then further transformed in our on-site factory where we unlock the sweet flavours and crisp textures for our delicious apple fillings. Complete transparency and minute supply chains mean UK-based pastry and baked good manufacturers can bake transparency and quality into every creation.”
How to bake traceability into your goods
1. Start with signature products: Focus initial traceability efforts on apple-based bestsellers where supply security adds maximum value. Danish pastries, seasonal turnovers, traditional apple pies and speciality items benefit most from guaranteed ingredient quality and compelling origin stories.
2. Choose integrated suppliers: Partner with ingredient suppliers who control their entire supply chain, from farm to processing. Puratos Fourayes exemplifies this approach, combining orchard ownership with processing expertise to guarantee complete visibility and supply security.
3. Leverage unique certifications: Puratos Fourayes is a Red Tractor-certified supplier of Bramley apples for bakery ingredients, offering high-quality apple fillings that create genuine differentiation for our customers.
Making the most of reliable, delicious, local apples
Food manufacturers with a reliable apple supply can commit to seasonal programmes, develop signature products and build customer loyalty through consistent quality; benefits that competitors using unpredictable sourcing cannot achieve. Reliability also creates authentic storytelling opportunities. “When manufacturers know their ingredients come from a heritage orchard in Kent, established in 1951, with sustainable farming practices and artisanal quality methods, they can share genuine stories that reflect real care,” says Kerr. “This expertise ensures exceptional artisanal quality, cultivated in the ideal growing conditions of ‘the garden of England’ and preserved through meticulous year-round storage – qualities that discerning customers truly value.”
Excellence from field to fork
Apple traceability delivers measurable returns for baked goods manufacturers that extend well beyond supply security by improving product quality and consumer positioning. Companies investing in traceable apple sourcing today are building the foundation capabilities in a market where transparency expectations will only intensify.
To discover more about Puratos’ field to fork traceability for Bramley apples, watch the video below:
To explore more about Puratos’ fruit sourcing programme, visit their website here
