100 Under $100: Tools for Reducing Postharvest Losses 100 UNDER $100: TOOLS for REDUCING POSTHARVEST LOSSES

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

100 Under $100: Tools for Reducing Postharvest Losses 100 UNDER $100: TOOLS for REDUCING POSTHARVEST LOSSES 1 • 100 Under $100: Tools for Reducing Postharvest Losses 100 UNDER $100: TOOLS FOR REDUCING POSTHARVEST LOSSES A woman’s cooperative in Mawali village, Lembeh Island, North Sulawesi, Indonesia, making snacks - Photo: ©IFAD/Susan Beccio Betsy Teutsch, Author Lisa Kitinoja, Technical Editor CONTENTS Technical Editor’s Foreword 6 Author’s Foreward 8 Introduction . 10 Postharvest Loss Reduction Super Tools and Icons 11 Section 1 — Farming . 14 INTRODUCTION 15 10. Digging Tools for Roots and Tubers 39 1. Planning Tools 18 11. Pole Pickers for Tree Fruits 41 2. Low Tunnels, High Tunnels, 12. Reusable Plastic Crates and Liners 43 and Greenhouses 21 13. Field Handcarts 45 3. Trellising 24 14. Pre-Sorting Harvested Crops 4. Pruning and Thinning 27 at the Farm 47 5. Knives, Clippers, and 15. Field Packing 49 Secateurs 29 16. Curing Roots and Tubers 51 6. Crop Maturity Indicator: 1 7. Curing Bulbs: Garlic and Onions 53 Refractometer 31 18. Tarpaulins and Ground Cloths for 7. Crop Maturity Indicator: Air Drying Crops 56 Color Charts 33 19. Mechanical Threshing 58 8. Harvesting Bags 35 20. Shelling 60 9. Smooth Buckets and Containers 37 Section 2 — Packinghouse . 62 INTRODUCTION 63 32. Packing Cartons, Crates, and Boxes 90 21. Cleaning the Produce 65 33. Interior Package Lining and Cushioning 22. Chlorinated Wash 68 for Reducing Product Injuries 93 23. Digital Temperature Probe 70 34. Plastic Liners and Packaging to 24. Hot Water Treatments 72 Retain Mosisture 95 25. Preservative Paste Treatments 74 35. Packaging Enclosures and 26. Trimming Produce 76 Modifications 98 27. Waxing 78 36. MAP (Modified Atmospheric 28. Sorting Tables/Manual Sorting 80 Packaging) and Shrink Wrapping 100 29. Color Charts for Sorting 37. Hand Dollies and Hand Pallet Jacks 103 and Grading 82 38. Evaporative Pre-Cooling 105 30. Sizing Rings and 39. Pre-Cooling: Hydro-Cooling with Mechanical Sizers 85 Cold Water and Ice 109 31. Packing by Hand 88 Section 3 — Value Addition/Food Processing . 111 INTRODUCTION 112 49. Pre-Treatments: Blanching and Steaming 40. Sanitation 114 + Honey and Ascorbic Acid Dips 135 41. Graters, Choppers, and Slicers 116 50. Canning and Bottling—Boiling Water 42. Fruit Presses 118 Bath and Pressure Canners 137 43. Pedal Powered Machines 120 51. Fruit Leathers and Osmotic Fruit 44. Low-Cost Grain Dryers 122 Dehydration 139 45. Low-Cost Moisture Meters 125 52. Preserving Herbs and Dried Vegetables 46. Direct Solar Drying for Fruits and in Edible Oils 141 Vegetables 127 53. Fermentation 143 47. Indirect Solar Drying 130 54. Processing Grains and Pulses 145 48. Drying: Heat-Assisted, Forced Air, 55. Micronutrient-Fortified Foods, and Natural Freezing 133 Biofortified Foods, and Edible Insects 148 Section 4 — Storage . 151 . INTRODUCTION 152 67. Improved Storage Area Ventilation 56. Storage Sanitation 155 Systems: Fans and Turbines 179 57. Make Your Own Hermetic Sealing 68. Compatibility and Temperature Grain and Seed Storage Containers 157 Management for Fruit and 58. Hermetic Sealing Storage Bags 159 Vegetable Storage 181 59. Hermetic Sealing Free-Standing 69. Ethylene Management 184 Dried Grain Containers 161 70. Evaporative Cooling Structures: 60. Hermetic Sealing Metal Silos Charcoal Coolers 186 and Cans 163 71. Evaporative Cooling: ZECC, 61. Natural Material Hermetic Sealing: Zero Energy Cool Chambers 188 Mud and Earth Clay Silos 166 72. Solar Cold Micro-Room 62. Oxygen Absorbers and Dry Ice 168 Sub-Contracting 191 63. Green Pesticides: Natural Treatments 73. Natural Underground Cooling 193 for Food Storage 170 74. Vegetable and Fruit Storage Innovations: 64. Pallets: Benefits and Best Practices 173 Evaptainers and Wakati Storage 65. Improved Storage Structure Design 176 Chambers 195 66. Best Practices for Storage 75. Pest Traps: Insects and Rodents 197 Room Stacking 178 Section 5 — Transportation . 199 . INTRODUCTION 200 79. Improved Loading Techniques 207 76. Optimizing Packaging and 80. Insulated Packages and Palletizing for Transport 202 Insulating Blankets 209 77. Bicycles, Tricycles, and Wagons 204 81. Cool Packs: Phase Change Materials 78. Cushioning Loads and for Lowering Temperatures 212 Avoiding Overloading 206 Section 6 — Markets: Local to Global . 214 INTRODUCTION 215 86. Misting or Sprinkling with Cool, 82. Raised Display Stalls with Sunshades 217 Clean Water 227 83. Portable Stores: Bikes, Trikes, 87. Market Access: Agricultural Co-ops and Wagons, Carts, and Cars 219 Women’s Self-Help Groups 229 84. Scales: Weights and Measures 222 88. Branding 232 85. Sorting/Repacking/Trimming and 89. Value-Added Certifications: On-Demand Ripening 225 Organic and Fairtrade 234 Section 7 — ICT: Information and Communication Technology . 237 INTRODUCTION 238 92. Video/TV for Agricultural Education 244 90. Agricultural Extension Agents 240 93. Mobile Phones/Apps 247 91. Radio 242 94. Computers and the Internet 250 Section 8 — Legal and Financial . .252 INTRODUCTION 253 98. Land Titling, Certificates, Deeds, 95. Capital: Savings, Credit, and Loans 255 and Tenure 261 96. Mobile Money 257 99. Border Crossings 263 97. Contract Farming 259 Tool 100 — Postharvest Resource Centers . 265. AfterWord: Essays . 268 1. Shared Tools: Leveraging 4. Plastic: Challenges and Collective Power 269 Opportunities 275 2. The Global Effort to Reduce 5. Female Agricultural Workers: Gender Food Loss and Waste 270 Equity and Postharvest Loss Reduction 280 3. Combating Global Warming by Reducing 6. Looking Ahead: Promising Tools 282 Food Loss and Waste (FLW) 273 General References and Resources . 285 Glossary . 309 . TECHNICAL EDITOR’S FOREWORD Recently, Food Loss and Waste (FLW) has become a the purpose of making money Small-scale farming global topic of keen interest, and reducing FLW is being can be a source of income generation for families, promoted as a “$700 billion business opportunity” but also provides [on .bcg com/2NTMRWm]. Feeding Earth’s growing improved nutrition population will require both reducing the currently high levels of FLW and taking better care of our pro- ecological and environmental well-being ductive resources (Stockholm Resilience Centre, 2018 energy efficiency [bit .ly/2S788z6]) The United Nations has included reducing FLW by 50% by 2030 in its Sustainable balanced community development Development Goals (SDGs) In the USA, since I first started working in this My education in postharvest biology and technol- field in the early 1990s, there has been huge growth ogy began in 1980, and during my graduate school in the number of farmer markets, CSAs, and cot- years I was privileged to work with Dr Adel A Kader tage scale food processing ventures Worldwide, at the University of California, Davis as a lab research smallholder growers produce food using much less assistant and as a teaching assistant He mentored fertilizer, irrigation, diesel powered equipment (trac- me for more than 30 years as I worked as a post- tors, combines) and other inputs that require energy harvest consultant, and introduced me to Dr Awad to manufacture (insecticides, herbicides, fungicides) M Hussein (University of Alexandria, Egypt), the UC They tend instead to use “people power” and manual Davis postharvest faculty, and dozens of research- labor for weeding, cultivation, harvesting and pack- ers and extension specialists in developing countries ing, which creates local jobs Industrial farming has Dr Kader, Dr Hussein, and many of my postharvest Infographic: AGrowingCulture org 6 • 100 Under $100: Tools for Reducing Postharvest Losses mentors including Dr S K Roy (IARI, India) and Win are fellow Brandeis University graduates who share Winogrond (managing director of Dole’s banana-pine- a love of global travel and environmental protection, apple operations in the Philippines and Thailand) have and I enjoyed spending time digging through piles of passed away, but some of their postharvest wisdom old research studies, presentations, extension publi- is being passed down via this new book cations and travel photos Thank you to my husband If any of my friends have wondered why I chose John, and my family and close colleagues Lizanne to work in the difficult and challenging field of low Wheeler and Hala Chahine-Tsouvalakis for their con- resource food system development, the simple tinuous support Thank you to everyone who sent us graphic on the previous page illustrates how impor- photos or gave us permission to use their images tant it is to support small scale and female farmers Thank you to the PEF Board of Directors for spon- in their work and livelihoods soring this book project, and especially to Dr Diane As I come to the end of my career, I hope many M Barrett, Dr Deirdre Holcroft, Dr Majeed Moham- others will pick up the “reducing postharvest loss for med, Bertha Mjawa, and Vijay Yadav Tokala for their small-scale farmers, traders and marketers” banner reviews and editing of the early drafts Finally, a grand and continue to help us move toward a cleaner and thanks to Agribusiness Associates Inc, Postharvest greener world Innovations LLC, and the Global Cold Chain Alliance Thank you to Betsy Teutsch for sharing her won- for sponsoring the production of the e-book edition derful journey into the burgeoning field of postharvest training While working with Betsy, I learned that we —Dr Lisa Kitinoja, La Pine, Oregon - December 2018 Postharvest trainer Solange Musanaze training young people at the new Postharvest Resource and Training Center in Rwanda - photo: Bertha Mjawa 7 • 100 Under $100: Tools for Reducing Postharvest Losses AUTHOR’S FOREWORD Two years ago,
Recommended publications
  • The Rose Times Floribundas
    INSIDE THIS ISSUE: Virtually speaking 1 The Chairman’s Notes 3 The Belfast Rose Trials 6 Gareth’s Fabulous 8 The Rose Times Floribundas Derek Visits Kiftsgate 10 VOLUME 4, ISSUE 1 AUTUMN 2020 The ARBA Influence 14 Dave Bryant sows the 17 My apologies for the lateness of this newsletter, ’I m going to blame it seeds on the pandemic! It honestly seems to me that the more we’re not Rose Festival 21 18 allowed to do and the more time we have locked in our homes, the Steve James tries 19 something different less I seem to get done! Jeff Wyckoff- The 21 However, in a summer where the society activities have been limited Great Garden Restoration to our website, Facebook Group and Twitter, there is very little The times they are 24 happening. a’changing for Mike We are currently having the website rebranded and upgraded. It will Roses on Trial at 27 Rochfords be easier to use and have better accessibility to the shop and Goodbye Don Charlton 30 Member’s Area. There will eventually be pages for our amateur rose Rose Royalty breeders to report on their new roses and give advice that will Dr John Howden on 34 Viruses of Roses hopefully encourage many of our members to have a go at breeding Pauline’s Show Patter 39 their own roses. Getting In Touch 43 The shop area is very important to the society. It provides a revenue Seasons Greetings 44 stream, even when there is nothing happening in terms of shows and events.
    [Show full text]
  • The Old Deanery Garden and King's Orchard and Cloister Garth
    The Kent Compendium of Historic Parks and Gardens for Medway The Old Deanery Garden and King’s Orchard and Cloister Garth, Rochester January 2015 The Old Deanery Garden and King’s Orchard and Cloister Garth Rochester, Kent TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE SITE DESCRIPTION LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE 1: Boundary map - Cloister Garth FIGURE 2: Boundary map – The Old Deanery Garden and King’s Orchard FIGURE 3: Key views map FIGURE 4: Aerial photograph FIGURE 5: OS Map 1st Edition 25” (1862-1875) FIGURE 6: OS Map 2nd Edition 25” (1897 - 1900) FIGURE 7: OS Map 3rd Edition 25” (1907 - 1923) FIGURE 8: OS Map 4th Edition 25” (1929 - 1952) FIGURE 9: The Deanery Garden Rochester, a watercolour by George Elgood in Gertrude Jekyll, Some English Gardens, Longmans, Green and Co. 1904. FIGURE 10: Precinct Garden and Old Deanery 2014. FIGURE 11: Entrance to Old Deanery through the teahouse at the east end 2014. FIGURE 12: Old Deanery garden looking towards the City wall at the SE end of the garden 2014. FIGURE 13: King's Orchard and City ditch 2014 FIGURE 14: Very old Medlar tree in King's Orchard with City wall beyond 2014 FIGURE 15: Cloister Garth facing Frater doorway 2014. FIGURE 16: Cloister Garth from the NW. Spring 2014. FIGURE 17: Looking through the Chapterhouse site to the Cloister Garth 2014. Planted with roses in Dean Hole's time. FIGURE 18: Lower level of the Cloister Garth at the East end 2104. FIGURE 19: Copper Beech tree adjacent to the Cloister Garth facing the Refectory doorway 2014.
    [Show full text]
  • Fate of Pesticide Residues on Raw Agricultural Crops After Postharvest Storage and Food Processing to Edible Portions
    28 Fate of Pesticide Residues on Raw Agricultural Crops after Postharvest Storage and Food Processing to Edible Portions Elpiniki G. Amvrazi University of Thessaly Greece 1. Introduction Most analyses of pesticide residues in foods are being performed in Raw Agricultural Commodities (RAC) for a variety of purposes, which include regulatory monitoring, import/export certification, risk assessment, field-application trials, organic food verification, and marketing to consumers. The levels of the positive detections in these analyses are generally being estimated on the basis of established Maximum Residue Limits (MRL's) which are set using field trial data for a particular pesticide to arrive at the highest residue levels expected under use according to Good Agricultural Practice (GAP). MRL's are a credible and useful means of enforcing acceptable pesticide use, and satisfy most of the above mentioned purposes of monitoring pesticide residues in the different food of plant origin. However, MRL’s use, proved to be inadequate as a guide to pesticide residue consumption through nutrition in health risk assessment studies from residues in food of plant origin and this is mainly because a wide range of RAC’s are processed before they are consumed. Storage and other post-harvest practices prior the further management of the product, as well as household and industrial food preparation processes may alter pesticide residues as compared with raw crops via chemical and biochemical reactions (hydrolysis, oxidation, microbial degradation etc.) and physicochemical processes (volatilization, absorption etc.). Although these processes usually are leading to reduction of any residues left on crops at harvest (Kaushik et al.
    [Show full text]
  • CHERRY Training Systems
    PNW 667 CHERRY training systems L. Long, G. Lang, S. Musacchi, M. Whiting A Pacific Northwest Extension Publication OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY n WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY n UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO in cooperation with MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY CHERRY training systems Contents Understanding the Natural Tree....................................................................................................................................................... 3 Training System Options.......................................................................................................................................................................... 4 Rootstock Options.......................................................................................................................................................................................... 5 Pruning and Training Techniques.....................................................................................................................................................5 Kym Green Bush............................................................................................................................................................................................ 10 Spanish Bush.....................................................................................................................................................................................................18 Steep Leader......................................................................................................................................................................................................25
    [Show full text]
  • UC Berkeley UC Berkeley Electronic Theses and Dissertations
    UC Berkeley UC Berkeley Electronic Theses and Dissertations Title Bad Seeds: Inhuman Poetics in Nineteenth-Century America Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0629g1j0 Author Osborne, Gillian Publication Date 2014 Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California Bad Seeds: Inhuman Poetics in Nineteenth-Century America By Gillian Kidd Osborne A dissertation submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in English in the Graduate Division of the University of California, Berkeley Committee in charge: Professor Samuel Otter, Chair Professor Anne-Lise François Professor Robert Kaufman Fall 2014 Copyright Gillian Kidd Osborne 2014 Abstract Bad Seeds: Inhuman Poetics in Nineteenth-Century America by Gillian Kidd Osborne Doctor of Philosophy in English University of California, Berkeley Professor Samuel Otter, Chair Plants sprout, vegetate, flower, and molder pervasively across nineteenth-century American literature and yet, like most roadside weeds today, are largely ignored. My dissertation demonstrates that, far from mere stylistic ornamentation, this profusion of vegetation was a means of imagining literature and humanness as inhuman: responsive to otherness outside of texts as well as at the core of a composing subject. Applied to aesthetic agents and objects, plant metaphor unsettled more rhetorical claims during the period for genius or formal convention as self-contained or individuated. The inhuman poetics I trace reveals ways in which poetry in nineteenth-century America was defined not only by genre and print conventions, but also by attempts to make literature responsive to what stands outside of texts: nature, history, and experience. I show how, by directing attention to literary texture and to the extra-literary, plant metaphors model ways of dialectically thinking through the relationship between humans and nature.
    [Show full text]
  • Table Grapes Postharvest Quality Maintenance Guidelines
    Table Grapes Postharvest Quality Maintenance Guidelines Carlos H. Crisosto Pomology Department University of California Davis, CA 95616 Joseph L. Smilanick Horticultural Crops Research Laboratory USDA-ARS 2021South Peach Avenue Fresno CA 93727 Scientific Name and Introduction The table grape (Vitis vinifera L.) is a non-climacteric fruit with a relatively low rate of physiological activity, is subject to serious water loss following harvest, which can result in stem drying and browning, berry shatter, and even wilting and shriveling of berries. Gray mold, caused by the fungus Botrytis cinerea, requires constant attention and treatment during storage and handling. In California the major cultivars are Thompson Seedless (Sultanina) and Flame Seedless marketed mostly during the summer months up to 8-10 weeks after harvest. Present interest centers on other introduced seedless 'Fantasy' cultivars such as 'Ruby Seedless', and 'Crimson'. The seeded 'Red Globe', cultivar is becoming important late in the season. Quality Characteristics and Criteria High consumer acceptance is attained for fruit with high SSC or SSC/TA ratio. Berry firmness is also an important factor for consumer acceptance as are lack of defects such as decay, cracked berries, stem browning, shriveling, sunburned, dried berries, and insect damage. Horticultural Maturity Indices In California, harvest date is determined by Soluble Solids Concentration (SSC) of 14 to 17.5% depending on cultivar and production area. In early production areas, an SSC/TA ratio of 20 or higher is used to determine minimum maturity for cultivars that meet a low minimum SSC. For red and black colored cultivars, there is also a minimum color requirement.
    [Show full text]
  • Temperature Profiling of Open- and Closed-Doored Produce Cases in Retail Grocery Stores
    Food Control 113 (2020) 107158 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Food Control journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/foodcont Temperature profiling of open- and closed-doored produce cases in retail grocery stores T Ana Lorena Monge Brenesa, Wyatt Brownb, Scott Steinmausb,Jeffrey K. Brechtc, Yurui Xiec, ∗ Ellen R. Bornhorstd, Yaguang Luod, Bin Zhoud, Angela Shawa, Keith Vorsta, a Iowa State University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Food Science and Human Nutrition, Iowa State University, 536 Farmhouse Lane Ames, Iowa, 50010, USA b Horticulture and Crop Science Department, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, CA, 93407, USA c Horticultural Sciences Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA d Food Quality Laboratory, USDA Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville, MD, 20705, USA ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Keywords: Temperature control of produce in the retail environment is essential to reduce food safety risks, maintain Refrigerated display cases quality, and reduce food waste. Previous studies have demonstrated that retrofitting or replacing open display Door retrofitting cases doors results in better control of temperature and humidity. However, there are no studies to date that Retail comprehensively evaluate temperature profiles in cases with and without doors in actual retail store environ- Temperature abuse ments. Twenty-five open and closed refrigerated display cases in ten retail stores in five states were monitored Food safety for temperature and humidity over 9 months. Sensors recorded data every 2 min at eight positions (top, middle, Produce bottom and under the bottom bin, in the front and back locations of each shelf). There were significant dif- ferences between open and closed cases, retailers, and sensor position in display cases on temperature and relative humidity (p < 0.0001).
    [Show full text]
  • Manipulating the Postharvest Period and Its Impact on Vine Productivity of Semillon Grapevines
    148 – Holzapfel et al. Manipulating the Postharvest Period and Its Impact on Vine Productivity of Semillon Grapevines Bruno P. Holzapfel,1* Jason P. Smith,1 Roger M. Mandel,1 and Markus Keller1,2 Abstract: Trials were established in four Semillon hot-climate vineyards to determine the importance of the postharvest period for vines grown under different cropping levels and management practices. Two sites were chosen in high- yielding, furrow-irrigated vineyards in the Riverina region, and two in lower-yielding, drip-irrigated vineyards in the neighboring Hilltops region of New South Wales, Australia. Treatments were imposed over two consecutive seasons to alter either the length or the effectiveness of the postharvest period at each site. Complete defoliation at harvest to eliminate carbon assimilation during the postharvest period decreased yields by up to 21% relative to the control vines after one season and by 50% after two seasons of treatment. Extending the length of the postharvest period by early crop removal over two consecutive seasons increased yields by 48% when fruit was retained to commercial maturity in the third year. Vegetative growth responded similarly, and vine balance was not altered by any treatment. Berry sugar concentration at harvest was highest for previously defoliated vines and lowest for vines with an extended postharvest period. Treatments were less effective at the Hilltops vineyards, where lower yields and water availability may have reduced the importance of the postharvest period. Leaf damage or leaf spray applied after harvest did not impact vine productivity. Results suggest that adequate postharvest re- covery is crucial for maintaining the productivity of high-yielding grapevines and that vineyards could be man- aged after harvest to manipulate vegetative growth and yield in the following season.
    [Show full text]
  • High Tunnel Melon and Watermelon Production
    High Tunnel Melon and Watermelon Production University of Missouri Extension M173 Contents Author Botany 1 Lewis W. Jett, Division of Plant Sciences, University of Missouri-Columbia Cultivar selection 3 Editorial staff Transplant production 4 MU Extension and Agricultural Information Planting in the high tunnel 5 Dale Langford, editor Dennis Murphy, illustrator Row covers 6 On the World Wide Web Soil management and fertilization 6 Find this and other MU Extension publications on the Irrigation 7 Web at http://muextension.missouri.edu Pollination 7 Photographs Pruning 8 Except where noted, photographs are by Lewis W. Jett. Trellising 8 Harvest and yield 9 Marketing 10 Pest management 10 Useful references 14 Melon and watermelon seed sources 15 Sources of high tunnels (hoophouses) 16 For further information, address questions to College of Dr. Lewis W. Jett Agriculture Extension State Vegetable Crops Specialist Food and Natural Division of Plant Sciences Resources University of Missouri Columbia, MO 65211 Copyright 2006 by the University of Missouri Board of Curators E-mail: [email protected] College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources High Tunnel Melon and Watermelon Production igh tunnels are low-cost, passive, melo has several botanical subgroups (Table 1). solar greenhouses that use no fossil In the United States, reticulatus and inodorus are Hfuels for heating or venting (Figure commercially grown, while the remaining groups 1). High tunnels can provide many benefits to are grown for niche or local markets. horticulture crop producers: The cantaloupe fruit that most Americans • High tunnels are used to lengthen the are familiar with is not actually a true cantaloupe.
    [Show full text]
  • Principles of Postharvest Horticulture
    Maximizing Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Quality Mark Ritenour University of Florida Indian River Research and Education Center Field Pack Accumulate Harvest Sort, Grade, etc. Transport Accumulate Degreen, Clean, Sort, Grade, Size, Cool Wax, Fungicide, Pack, Ripen, etc. Store? Transport Palletize Transport Packinghouse Preharvest Factors Affecting Harvest & Quality • Preharvest Factors • Genetics • Tree size – e.g. dwarf vs. full sized. • Uniformity of crop – e.g. harvest one time or spot pick / harvest multiple times. • Ease of separating product from plant – e.g. maturity, abscission zone formation, etc. • Product location on the tree – e.g. inner vs. outer canopy. Preharvest Factors (continued) • Weather Conditions • Rainfall. • Too much: increased decay, blue albedo, zebra skin, diluted sugars, etc. • Not enough: poor size, wilting, increased plugging, concentrated sugars, etc. • Dew on the crop. • E.g. oil spotting. http://alexjonesphoto.com/recent/archive/rainycitrus.jpg Preharvest Factors (continued) • Weather Conditions (continued) • Temperature. • E.g. chilling or high temperature injury, color change, shape (sheepnose), etc. • Wind. • E.g. wind scarring, sand damage, spread of dirt & spores. Preharvest Factors (continued) • Weather Conditions (continued) • Light. • E.g. effects on photosynthesis & temperature. Preharvest Factors (continued) • Weather Conditions (continued) • Light. • E.g. effects on photosynthesis & temperature. Time of Day • Temperature. • High temperatures increase cooling demand. Possible use of night harvesting. • Chilling susceptibility may change throughout the day. • Dew on the crop. (e.g. oil spotting in citrus) • Food supply within product (e.g. photosynthate reserves in flowers). Preharvest Factors (continued) • Cultural Practices • Use of chemicals – e.g.: • Ethylene releasing chemicals (Ethephon), Abscission inhibitors, pesticides. • Irrigation • Nutrition • Pruning • Planting densities • Cover crops/ plastic mulches • Can affect crop maturity, color, insect damage, etc.
    [Show full text]
  • Plant Inventory No.233
    JSX Plant Inventory No. 233 •UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE Washington, D. C. June 1948 PLANT MATERIAL INTRODUCED BY THE DIVISION OF PLANT EX- PLORATION AND INTRODUCTION, BUREAU OF PLANT INDUSTRY,1 OCTOBER 1 TO DECEMBER 31, 1937 (Nos. 124969 to 126493) CONTENTS < Page Introductory statement — ._— . 1 Inventory _ '. ___ 3 Index of common and scientific names 81 INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT This inventory, No. 133, records the plant material (Nos. 124969 to 126493) received by the Division of Plant Exploration and Introduc- tion during the period October 1 to December 31,1937. With the definite purpose of studying wild tomato material in the .field and of collecting whatever was available, particularly from plants ibelieved to be truly wild, Dr. H. L. Blood, of the Utah Agricultural Experiment Station, and cooperating with the Division of Fruit and Vegetable Crops and Diseases, Bureau of Plant Industry, spent the last 2 months of 1937 in Peru, Bolivia, northern Argentina, and Chile, collecting not only this type of material but also cultivated tomatoes from native markets. In addition to true tomatoes, he gathered seeds of various other non- tuberous solanaceous plants, including species of Cyphomandra, Jficandra, Physalis, and Solanwm^ which have been added to the work- ing material of Department pathologists. Since that time, many of his collections have been studied taxo- nomically and reported by C* H. Muller (Miscellaneous Publication No. 382, A Revision of the Genus Lyeopersicon^ July 1940); these include one new species, one new variety, and three new forms. Pathologists have already published on the unusual characteristics of one of the wild tomatoes, Lyeopersicon hirsutwm, found by Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • Design Strategies to Achieve Sustainable Development In
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Sapientia WSEAS TRANSACTIONS on ENVIRONMENT and DEVELOPMENT Dulce Antunes, Graça Miguel, Alcinda Neves Sustainable Postharvest Handling of Horticultural Products DULCE ANTUNES, GRAÇA MIGUEL, ALCINDA NEVES Universidade do Algarve, Faculdade de Engenharia de Recursos Naturais, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139 Faro, PORTUGAL e-mail: [email protected] Abstract: Sustainable commercial horticultural success depends on satisfying consumer requirements. Fresh fruits and vegetables are important components of human food. However, horticultural products are highly perishable and losses can be of great importance if postharvest correct measures are not provided. Quality of fresh horticultural products can not be improved by postharvest technologies, only can be maintained, what means horticultural products must be of high quality at harvest. There is a worldwide trend to explore new alternatives to increase storage life, giving priority to methods that reduce horticultural product decay avoiding negative effects to human health and environment. The objective of our research was to apply environmental and human health friendly techniques to preserve fresh fruit quality through storage. Figs, apricots, oranges, pomegranates and kiwifruits were treated with sodium bicarbonate, calcium chloride, acetic acid or subjected to modified atmosphere packaging to increase their storage life with minimal quality loss, as well as damage to human health and environment. The use of these treatments and techniques gave a great performance in the reduction of fruit losses, weight loss and fruit softening. Postharvest techniques such as modified atmosphere and calcium, sodium bicarbonate and acetic acid treatments, when applied in adequate concentrations, help to keep fruit quality through storage, without damaging the environment and human health.
    [Show full text]