Postharvest Losses of Fruits and Vegetables Yoram Fuchs Dept. of Postharvest Science of Fresh Produce ARO, The Volcani Center, Bet Dagan, Israel

Postharvest loss: Is defined as any change in the quality or quantity of the product after harvest that decreases its value. The losses may range from slight defects to total loss of the produce! Small defects (rind breakdown) Total loss (sour rot)

Fighting Hunger by Saving Perishables Jorge Luis Alonso · President and CEO of the Global Cold Chain Alliance, spoke to a special United Nations Forum on the global food crisis at United Nations headquarters in New York City. Among many things said that countries without proper cold chain infrastructure lose about 30 to 60% of all perishable products each year before they even get to the table. He argued that the solution to combating world hunger involves more than just producing more food, but reducing losses through “proper postharvest technologies.Global Cold Chain AllianceUnited Nations Forum

THE STRATEGIES FOR ATTAINING THESE GOALS INCLUDE: The primary goals of research on postharvest biology and technology of fresh produce are to reduce losses in quantity and quality and to maintain safety between harvest and consumption sites.

(1) Growing cultivars that have good flavor and nutritional quality plus long postharvest-life potential when harvested at optimum maturity (2) using an integrated crop management system that maximizes yield without sacrificing quality (3) using optimal postharvest handling practices to maintain quality and safety of the food products.

The postharvest story starts at production. Therefore, efforts should be made to integrate production with postharvest management. Food loss reduction is normally less costly than equivalent increases (in quantity) in food production. There is a need for a sound foundation in developing integrated postharvest management systems for fruit and vegetables, with proper infrastructural facilities and logistic support. The idea is to try, as far as possible, to maintain the initial product quality. Usually there are both losses in quantity and in quality

Estimated Levels of Postharvest Losses in the Asia Pacific Region COUNTRY India Indonesia Iran Korea Philipines Sri-Lanka Thailand Vietnam LEVEL OF LOSS (%) – 50 >35 20 – – – – R.S. Rolle, Agr.Industries Officer, FAO, 2004

CAUSES OF POSTHARVEST LOSSES External factors Mechanical injuries Parasitic diseases Internal factors Physiological deterioration

RAW MATERIAL No Matter how perfect postharvest operations are, good returns cannot be obtained from poor quality raw materials Pre-harvest essential factors: -Select suitable varieties -Apply proper crop management -Conduct proper disease and pest control -Harvest at the appropriate maturity stage -Apply proper harvesting practices in order to minimize damage at time of harvest

Effect of ripeness stage and drop height on incidence of internal bruising in tomatoes (‘Solar set’) Fruit with internal bruising (%)Drop height Breaker stageGreen stagecm Two drops on opposite sides. Extracted from SA Sargent at al. HS719 UF/IFAS, Fla. 2006

SANITATION: before, during and after harvest Dropped fruit and plant debris – a source of infection. Remove it from the grove. Dropped fruit collected for elimination Repeatedly used infected packages and tools – a source of infection. The tools must be cleaned and sterilized. Used carton packages should be discarded.

POSTHARVEST LOSSES MAY OCCUR AT DIFFERENT STEPS DURIN THE MARKETING CHAIN Losses at harvest: injuries, pressure damage Losses at the packinghouse: chemicals, brushes and wax damage Losses during storage: chilling injuries, decay, peel disorders Losses during transport: bruising, deformation, decay Losses at retail: decay, softening, wilting Losses at the consumers: decay, softening, wilting

Losses during harvest Pressure damage Mechanical injurySpliting

Long button injury

WOUNDING BY THE STEMS

MECHANICAL DAMAGE BIN DAMAGE

Losses at the packinghouse Chemical spray injuries

Many studies showed that hot water dips (2-3 min at 53ºC) reduces decay development. Recently, a new method combining a short hot water rinsing and brushing treatment (55-60ºC for s) was developed to clean and disinfect agricultural products.

Brushes damage Hot tank damage

Wax damage

Losses during Storage Decay

MODIFIED ATMOSPHERE STORAGE OF TOMMY ETKINS MANGO

Physiological disorders Chilling injuries Stem-end Rind breakdown

CHILLING INJURIES

Losses at various stages of marketing of two mango varieties ‘Alphonso’ loss (%) ‘Totapuri’ loss (%) Kind of loss (damage) Losses at level of MechanicalHARVEST Spoilage (decay) Bird damage Over-ripe Pilferage Hail storm Total

Losses at various stages of marketing of two mango varieties ‘Alphonso’ loss (%) ‘Totapuri’ loss (%) Kind of loss (damage) Losses at level of BreakageTransport Spoilage (decay) And whole- sale market Over-mature Immature & unmarketable size Total

Losses at various stages of marketing of two mango varieties ‘Alphonso’ loss (%) ‘Totapuri’ loss (%) Kind of loss (damage) Losses at level of Over-mature & srivelling STORAGE Spoilage (decay) Total Eight to nine days after harvest, including five days in the market. Srinivas et al J. Food Sci. Technol :70-72 Bangalore, India

Losses at various stages of marketing of two mango varieties ‘Alphonso’ loss (%) ‘Totapuri’ loss (%) Kind of loss (damage) Losses at level of: Overmature & shrivelling RETAIL Spoilage (decay) Pilferage Total OVERALL LOSS

Postharvest Losses in Selected Commodities in Taiwan (1993) (%) CommodityTransportWholesaleRetailTotal Chinese cabbage Turnip Green bean3104 Watermelon Papaya Carambula26715 Apple2136 Banana03710 Wiils, McGlasson, Graham and Joyce (1998)

IN SUMMARY It is necessary to pay special attention along the various stages of the handling of the commodity (from harvest, packinghouse treatments, storage, transport, retail and consumers) to avoid postharvest losses. Proper infrastructure, logistics and management and human resources are essential to maintain improved postharvest procedures and marketing of fruits and vegetables. Thank you!

Fighting Hunger by Saving Perishables Jorge Luis Alonso · President and CEO of the Global Cold Chain Alliance, spoke to a special United Nations Forum on the global food crisis at United Nations headquarters in New York City. Among many things said that countries without proper cold chain infrastructure lose about 30 to 60% of all perishable products each year before they even get to the table. He argued that the solution to combating world hunger involves more than just producing more food, but reducing losses through “proper postharvest technologies.Global Cold Chain AllianceUnited Nations Forum