Division 4.4 Proof of origin:

A ‘Gentse azalea’ must come from a company listed in the register kept by the applicant group. That register is forwarded to the competent supervisory body. The registered companies are either azalea growers (cultivating azaleas from cuttings until they reach the fully grown ‘green’ stage or until the first show of colour) or traders/forcers (buying fully grown ‘green’ azaleas and placing them in forcing houses at least until the first show of colour).

Every producer of the pot plant ‘Gentse azalea’ must comply with the standards laid down by the Azalea Quality Project (Project Azalea Kwaliteit, PAK). The PAK is intended to maintain the high quality of the ‘Gentse azalea’ and is a way of guaranteeing that quality. By signing a quality charter and receiving a participant number and a PAK number, each and every registered company undertakes to comply with the quality standards laid down by the PAK. Registered azalea growers keep a crop information sheet for each batch until the pot plants are ready for sale. The crop information sheet guarantees that the growing method and quality standards have been applied. When ‘green’ azaleas are shipped to the forcer, they are accompanied by the crop information sheet for the batch in question and a PAK sticker showing their PAK number. Pot plants that are ready for sale are labelled by the grower or the trader/forcer with the label described in point 4.8 before leaving the company.