Custom piece-rate registration software for soft fruit
Appfront builds software for growers of strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and blueberries who pay their pickers by piece rate: every tray or crate scanned on drop-off under the picker's name, with field, tunnel or polytunnel, variety and time recorded; a quality check per tray that counts towards pay; hours alongside the scanned trays; and a piece rate per picker that is checked against the hourly wage. So payroll is accurate, pickers can see what they have earned, and you know which picker delivers the best quality.
What is piece-rate registration software for soft fruit?
In soft fruit, pickers are often paid by the piece: per tray of strawberries, per kilo of raspberries, per crate of blueberries. A picker brings their tray to the collection point, and that tray must be recorded under their name. Quality counts too: a tray with rotten or unripe fruit is worth less. Piece-rate registration software records each tray under the picker's name, handles the quality check, and calculates the piece rate.
Without such software, a team leader tallies trays on a list, or the picker is given a slip. At the end of the week the lists are retyped. A tray recorded under the wrong name leads to disputes. Whether a picker's piece rate exceeds the hourly wage only becomes apparent on the payslip. And the team leader may know which picker produces a lot of rejects, but it is recorded nowhere.
We build custom solutions because the registration must fit your business: which crops and varieties you grow, whether you pick in tunnels, polytunnels or in the open field, how your collection points work, which rates you apply, how the quality check is carried out, and which payroll systems and staffing agencies you work with. Time registration knows hours; it does not know trays, quality and rates per variety.
Every tray under a name
Scanned on drop-off with the picker's badge or code, recording field, tunnel or polytunnel, variety and time.
Quality counts
A check per tray or sample, with rejects or corrections processed directly into the piece rate.
Checked against the hourly wage
Piece rate shown alongside worked hours per picker, with an alert if it falls below the hourly wage.
How we build your piece-rate registration software for soft fruit
We start with a picking day: how many pickers, how many collection points, how trays are counted today, and how much time the end-of-week processing takes.
Your crops, varieties and fields, the collection points, rates, quality checks, and your payroll systems and staffing agencies.
Pickers with badge or code, rates by crop, variety and period, and the rules for quality.
Scanning at the collection point, the quality check, hours per picker, and the check against the hourly wage.
Export to payroll and temp agency, a per-picker overview, insight per plot, and then management.
What piece-rate registration software for soft fruit actually does
The components below come up with almost every soft fruit grower paying piece rates. Which ones you need depends on your crop and the number of pickers.
Pickers
Pickers with a pass or QR code, temp agency and contract, even with frequent changes during the season.
Scanning
Trays and crates scanned at the collection point, with plot, tunnel or greenhouse, variety and time, even without signal.
Quality control
Checks per tray or by sample, with rejection or correction and the reason, processed into the piece rate.
Rates
Piece-rate rates per type, variety, period and, if needed, plot, set by you.
Hours and check
Hours worked per picker alongside piece-rate earnings, with an alert if the piece rate falls below the hourly wage.
Pay and overview
Export to payroll and temp agency, and an overview per picker of trays and earnings.
Who we build piece-rate registration software for in soft fruit
The software is designed for growers who currently keep piece-rate records on tally sheets and receipts.
Strawberry growers
Daily picking in tunnels, greenhouses or on racks. Scanning per tray and quality are the core.
Raspberry and blackberry growers
Picking by punnet in tunnels. Rates per variety and quality control matter most.
Blueberry growers
Picking by crate or kilo in the field. Hours alongside piece rates are what's needed.
Cherry growers
Short seasons with many pickers. Registering pickers quickly and the overview are the core.
Test your idea first: a working prototype in 1 day
With OneDayBuild, we turn your idea into something tangible in one day for €1,150, so you can see whether further development is worth the investment. Decide to go ahead with the full build? Then we credit the full cost.
Explore OneDayBuild →Technology and integrations
This page covers piece-rate pay in soft fruit. For picking rounds and crates in the orchard, see our page on a picking list app for top fruit, for hours and tasks in the greenhouse our page on a labour registration app for horticulture, and for inspecting your batches our page on quality certificates in soft fruit. You can read about our approach under building software.
Why choose Appfront for your piece-rate registration software in soft fruit?
A picker who can't see what they've earned will go and work for the neighbour. That's what we build on: every tray attributed to them, quality that counts, and pay that adds up.
No arguments about trays
Every tray is recorded against the picker with time and place. What the picker has delivered is visible.
Pay that adds up
Piece rates are checked against hours. A picker below the hourly wage is flagged during the season, not on the payslip.
Quality rewarded
Rejections per picker are visible. The supervisor can step in, and good pickers stand out.
Security and privacy in piece-rate registration software for soft fruit
The software holds picker data, including names, contracts, hours and earnings. Access is set by role: the picker sees their own trays and earnings, the supervisor their crew, and administration the pay. Registrations are logged with time and collection point.
The software runs in a European data centre, with encrypted storage and daily backups. Scanners and phones in the field work without signal and sync later.
Frequently asked questions about piece-rate registration software in soft fruit
Questions soft fruit growers ask before getting started.
It records every tray or crate against the picker's name at the collection point, processes the quality check, calculates the piece rate using your rates per type and variety, sets it alongside hours worked, flags if it falls below the hourly wage, and passes the data on to payroll and the temp agency.
In the Netherlands, pay may not fall below the statutory minimum wage per hour worked, including for piece-rate work. Your collective labour agreement (cao) may also contain arrangements. The software checks against the hourly rate you set; what applies to your situation is something to discuss with your adviser.
With a pass, wristband or QR code that is scanned at the collection point, using a phone or scanner. It's quick, even with a queue of pickers.
Yes. Scans are stored on the device and synced as soon as there is a connection.
During inspection, a tray is approved, corrected or rejected, with a reason given. This is applied to piece-rate pay according to the rules you define.
Yes. Hours and piece rates per picker go out as an export or via an integration with the staffing agency or your payroll administration.
Check that first. A time registration system is enough if you pay by the hour. Custom development makes sense if you pay per tray or per kilo, if quality counts towards pay, or if you want to see piece-rate pay and hours per picker side by side.
Every tray attributed to a named picker, and piece-rate pay that adds up?
Tell us what you grow, how many pickers you have and how you currently track piece-rate pay. We'll show you what scanning, inspection and the pay overview look like.