Operational Group for the Economic Valorisation and Marketing of Cherries

The cherry sector has export potential, since it can find a market for this fruit internationally. However, given the particular care its handling requires, exporting demands good-quality cherries, scale in production, modern post-harvest techniques and efficient organisation of distribution and sales channels. Despite the real opportunities for growth in this crop in the region, problems remain in relation to the sector's qualification, in terms of knowledge transfer and support for producers, with regard to the effects of the different varieties, the stage of ripeness, the year and post-harvest storage conditions on the nutritional and sensory quality of the cherry.

The priority focus of this Operational Group was to improve the quality of growers' cherries and thereby add economic value to the municipality's cherries, through the implementation and monitoring of farming practices and post-harvest measures.

Ruris monitored producers' financial delivery and provided support in preparing and submitting payment claims through the following steps:

• Analysis and organisation of documentation;
• Analysis of expenditure documents;
• Completion of the files required for the payment claim;
• Completion and submission of the payment claim on the platform;
• Follow-up on the status of the appraisal of payment claims;
• Support in drafting responses to requests for clarification;
• Digital organisation of the payment claim documentation.
• Answering queries.