Articles
What Are Brix Measurements and Are They Crucial in Fresh Produce?
Brix is the most common unit used in the food and beverage industry. Brix measurement is helpful in crop production, scheduling harvest, quality control, marketing, and processing. The use of Brix is widespread because it is easy and inexpensive, and it can be used in fields, storerooms, during transit, in shops, and in processors. Nondestructive… Continue reading…
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Cherry Harvest Time: How to Know the Best Day to Pick Sweet Cherries
Sweet cherries’ harvest maturity can be estimated by chronology and physical attributes like skin color, weight, size, and firmness. Internal quality parameters like soluble solids content, titratable acidity, and taste can also be used as harvest maturity indices. Skin color is considered the best indicator for the optimum harvest maturity of cherries. Simultaneous non-destructive estimation… Continue reading…
What Is Dry Matter Content and Why It’s Crucial for Fresh Produce Quality?
Dry matter is measured on farms to monitor maturity and determine the optimal harvest time for climacteric fruits and vegetables. In the postharvest stage, dry matter is used for quality control for sorting and grading fresh produce. Dry matter determines the storage, transport, and ripening conditions to achieve optimum quality and extended shelf life. Wholesalers,… Continue reading…
What Causes Avocado Quality Problems? Common Issues in the Supply Chain Explained
Avocados are challenging due to their unique ripening process, which requires a few days post-harvest to overcome the “tree factor.” The leading causes of quality problems are incorrect maturity at harvest, careless handling, and improper storage temperatures and gas mixtures in cool storage. Limiting problems starts with harvesting avocados at the correct maturity and quality… Continue reading…
What Are the Harvest Maturity Indices for Strawberries?
Strawberries can be harvested at two different maturities to meet marketing needs at varying distances. Color is the most critical parameter used as a maturity index for strawberry harvest. Other harvest maturity indices are size, sugar content, and taste. Non-destructive measurements using portable NIR spectroscopy devices are best suited for establishing harvest maturity indices. Strawberries… Continue reading…
How Is Non-Destructive Quality Assessment of Fresh Produce Changing the Supply Chain?
The standard quality parameters monitored are color, texture, sugar, titratable acidity, and dry matter content. Several destructive methods of estimation exist for the parameters. Near-infrared spectroscopy is currently the only non-destructive method for quality control of sugars, titrable acidity, internal color, and dry matter content. Near-infrared spectroscopy can precisely and rapidly estimate all quality parameters,… Continue reading…
What Are the Best Melon Harvest Maturity Indices?
The harvest maturity indices vary based on the melon groups. The physical harvest maturity indices are size, shape, weight, color, firmness, stem detachment, and tendril condition. The chemical harvest maturity indices include Brix/sweetness, titrable acidity, taste, and aroma. The optimal harvest maturity index for melon differs for each accession. Several aspects of the ripening process must… Continue reading…
