European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - January 18, 1995, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Commissary buyers Rise Early to get the pick of the crops by Doyle Tillman Kaiserslautern Bureau Resh fruits and vegetables Are always in season in Saa Brucken the town in southwestern Germany where buyers for . Commissaries Purchase produce for americans stationed in Europe. The bustling Market is one of the main produce markets for defense commissary Agency stores in Europe doing about $5.5. Million in business annually with the Agency. Similar markets a called terminal markets a Are in Frankfurt and Niernberg Germany at the Hague in the Netherlands and in London. While the produce in each Market May be similar they All have their specialities. Red potatoes for example Are purchased in Saa Brucken for Frankfurt Consumers too. The Saa Brucken Market opens at 4 30 a.m., and by the time most people Are going to work it is closing. The sates area which has the atmosphere of a Farmers Market is open six Days a week during which Art estimated 60 million pounds of produce change hands. One Benefit of regional markets is that produce can be quickly delivered to commissary stores and readied for Sale. For that reason a providing same Day Purchase delivery and availability a workers put up with the Chilly Early morning weather. The name of the game is service Quot said Leo Becker a contracting officer for the produce business unit of the defense personnel subsistence Center Europe in Kaiserslautern Germany. His office monitors contracts for the commissary service. Becker said Quality is the dominating Factor while Price is of secondary concern. Buyers shop the markets weekdays in search of Quality foods at reasonable prices. Before a banana Tomato head of lettuce Carrot or any other fruit or vegetable hits the commissary sales floor it will have been scrutinized to ensure it is up to Quality standards. Purchases begin with commissary produce managers who Call in orders a Day in Advance. A Normal commissary might have two or three orders per week while a Large store such As the one at Ramstein a in Germany receives daily deliveries. Then buyers who make purchases for specific a commissaries on different Days of the week head for the terminal Market. They stroll past the various produce displays comparing Price and Quality and buying in Quantity. Produce is delivered to an inspection area where . Military food inspectors cull the Good from the bad and the Purchase is completed. Final orders Are consolidated onto trucks which Are assigned specific delivery routes. Some commissary orders Merit a separate truck while the orders for smaller stores Are put on individual pallets and loaded into Large trucks. A Fleet of contracted trucks then whisks the produce away to commissaries. The american commissary service has been buying in Saa Brucken since 1970, when buyers shopped for Only about 50 items. Today commissary produce managers have a Choice of roughly 180 different produce items to include of sales floors. Other restaurants and grocery outlets shop the Market As Well but according to one buyer the american Agency is probably one of the biggest buyers at the Saa Brucken Market. A a a a a. A. A a Quot produce sold in Saa Brucken comes from such countries As Belgium Colombia Costa Rica France Ghana Mexico the Netherlands Spain sri Lanka and the United states. Those fruits and vegetables once in the commissary system find their ways into about 30 produce markets in Germany Italy Spain and Turkey. Some produce commodities such As oranges Are bought directly from the grower. In such cases the Quot middleman Quot is eliminated and savings passed on to customers. Willie Nonnweiler who manages business for the Schummer outlet a Large supplier has been working with the americans for 20 years. Quot the work relationship is very Good Quot he said. Denoted there is a Burden with red tape but ranks the . Agency High because accounts Are paid and he can count on it for business. The Hafner cd is another longtime supplier of produce to deca. Hans Hafner the owner said he has no problems working with the americans. The guiding policy deca enforces on vendors is its right to reject substandard produce before concluding a Deal. Military inspectors at the Market say they might reject .5 percent of would be deca purchases a week. Although there Are published standards looks Are very important too. Inspectors Check the condition of produce As Well As to see if there Are insects present. Quot we use common sense cause we shop in the commissary too Quot said  sgt. Walter Burns a food inspector for 2v2 years. A. If produce fails to meet Quality control standards Burns said Quot vendors get a Chance to replace the  vendors who refuse simply lose the business. Quot they be got to respect . Standards Quot because if vendors continually turn in bad produce they can lose their Blanket contracts. And that Quot makes them lose Money Quot Burns said. /. Above san thires War a Markandu from sri Lanka tries to interest buyers in fresh pineapples. A amps photos by Ken George despite the chill and Early hour vendors Are Able to joke around. 16 the stars and 5tripes wednesday january 18, 1995 the stars and stripes 17