Articles
A novel inbox treatment for maintaining quality of pears during shipping and distribution
Article number
1403_18
Pages
149 – 154
Language
English
Abstract
Often, South African pear producers face the risk of pears ripening and consequently softening and yellowing during shipping to countries with a preference for firmer pears such as the Far East, the Middle East and African countries.
A sachet with a 1-MCP substance which can be applied at time of packing was developed by AgroFresh Inc. ‘Packham’s Triumph’ and ‘Abate Fetel’ pear varieties were tested with this technology in South Africa.
Fruit were packed and treated at different times after harvest (3-4 weeks). Various concentrations of the 1-MCP inbox treatments were tested and compared against a commercial 1-MCP application (SmartFreshSM, AgroFresh Inc.) in airtight containers.
Fruit were evaluated after 5 and 7 weeks regular atmosphere cold storage at -0.5°C to simulate shipping and distribution and after a 7 day shelf life at 20°C. The 1-MCP inbox sachets successfully retarded fruit ripening during storage and shelf life.
A clear dose rate effect was exhibited resulting in better retention of fruit quality, specifically with a decreased time delay before application.
Delayed application after harvest also had an effect on the efficacy.
Registration of this technology in South Africa is currently in progress.
A sachet with a 1-MCP substance which can be applied at time of packing was developed by AgroFresh Inc. ‘Packham’s Triumph’ and ‘Abate Fetel’ pear varieties were tested with this technology in South Africa.
Fruit were packed and treated at different times after harvest (3-4 weeks). Various concentrations of the 1-MCP inbox treatments were tested and compared against a commercial 1-MCP application (SmartFreshSM, AgroFresh Inc.) in airtight containers.
Fruit were evaluated after 5 and 7 weeks regular atmosphere cold storage at -0.5°C to simulate shipping and distribution and after a 7 day shelf life at 20°C. The 1-MCP inbox sachets successfully retarded fruit ripening during storage and shelf life.
A clear dose rate effect was exhibited resulting in better retention of fruit quality, specifically with a decreased time delay before application.
Delayed application after harvest also had an effect on the efficacy.
Registration of this technology in South Africa is currently in progress.
Publication
Authors
D.W. Viljoen, I.J. Crouch, H. Tayler
Keywords
1-methylcyclopropene, inbox application, flesh firmness, internal ethylene
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