Generation of quality in the products

At the moment of harvesting the trees in the forest those that show fungus or insect attacks or abnormal growth, such as screw shaped fiber, are rejected. In a similar fashion when the logs arrive at the factory those that are suspect of fungus or insect attacks are rejected.
The thickness and texture of the plywood are continuously inspected during the veneering process. The veneer is then submerged in boiling water to establish the basic sanitary conditions of the product.

The quality control inspector and the machine operator check continuously the product that comes out of the punching presses to insure that the product has the correct shape and dimensions.
Drying is the next step. It takes place at a temperature higher than 100 degrees centigrade and lasts about 18 minutes. At the end of the process the sticks have 8 to 12% humidity and are free of bacteria and fungus. The quality control inspector takes random samples of the product at the discharge of the dryer.

The products are polished and waxed afterwards. In the case of the ice-cream sticks, waxing is indispensable for the adequate handling of the product in the automatic ice-cream making machinery. Festa S. A. uses carnauva wax, a product approved by the FDA, which is automatically fed in the polishers in very small quantities, approximately 0.05 Kg. per ton of finished product.

The products that require dimensional precision, in the tenth millimeter range, because they are used in the automatic machines of ice-cream manufactures are inspected and packed one by one by electronic computerized sorting machines. Manual or lower technology sorting does not guarantee the correct handling of the sticks in the ice-cream inserters. Each machine has an operator permanently to keep an eye on the resulting quality. The electronic quality sorting checks the following parameter: dimension, curving, chipped ends, cracks, warp, zig-zag, thickness, color and contour.

A quality control inspector checks permanently the output of the sorting machines to make sure that the machines keep within the established tolerances. If he finds deviations he stops the sorting until the machine is set up again. The suspect product is resorted or rejected.
As the spoons have less stringent dimensional requirements the sorting process takes place visually on a conveyor belt to control warp, color and shape. The spoons are fed directly to the packing machines, which carry out a heat sealing process. The strips are inspected to guarantee the quality of the product.

The sorting of the tongue depressors is carried out visually on conveyor belts also.
All personnel of the section of sorting and packing of ice-cream sticks and spoons as well as tongue depressors must wear caps, masks, latex gloves and ear protectors. Furthermore they must wash their hands with antibacterial soap or cream before their enter the section.
Each step in the production of toothpicks and cloth pins is controlled in a similar fashion to the one applied to the products mentioned above. A hundred per cent visual inspection is carried out at the end of the process and any defective product is rejected.
The packed products are inspected at random. They are sent to the warehouse if they pass the inspection.

The cartons are carefully glued and security taped to prevent variations in humidity or the entrance of dust or any other contaminant.
The cartons are marked in each section with an identification code to determinate production date, machine and operator code, type of product and content of the carton.
The cartons are stored in a dry and cool place to prevent the growth of microorganisms.
A specialized laboratory carries out a microbiological inspection at regular intervals. The tests measure bacteria, yeast and fungus levels which must be kept within accepted international standards.