A frozen berry that arrives vibrant, free-flowing, and on-spec is the result of a tightly controlled journey. Understanding that path helps buyers see what they are actually paying for — and where quality is won or lost.
Harvest at peak ripeness
It starts in the field. Unlike fresh berries picked early to survive transit, IQF berries are harvested at peak ripeness, when colour, sugar, and aroma are at their best. That is only possible because the next step happens fast.
Frozen in hours, not days
Within hours of picking, berries are cleaned, sorted, and individually quick frozen — passed on a belt through very cold air so each berry freezes separately and rapidly. Fast freezing forms small ice crystals that leave cell walls intact, which is why a good IQF berry thaws with minimal drip and holds its shape. This is the moment the harvest's nutrition is locked in.
Graded, inspected, documented
Frozen berries are then graded — optically and by hand — to a 95% whole-berry ratio, with damaged and foreign matter held to tight limits. Each lot is inspected and issued a Certificate of Analysis. Origin is chosen per specification: we source from certified growers matched to the grade and volume a buyer needs, rather than a single fixed country.
An unbroken cold chain
From there, Tuna Project Global Trade Inc. in İzmir consolidates and exports the berries under a maintained −18 °C reefer chain to the UK and EU. The cold chain is never the afterthought — it is the product. Hold it, and a strawberry, blueberry, or black mulberry reaches your line in the condition it left the field.
Want to trace a specific line back to spec and origin? Request details and a quote.