Fruits and vegetables consumption is essential to a healthy diet, reducing the risk of cancer, diabetes, and heart disease. They are known as Protective food as due to good source of vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals, and fiber. The parts of fruits that are usually not consumed, such as peel, seeds, and pomaces, are also rich in these compounds. Strategies to transform and include them in the food chain should be considered a global approach to achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs). Moreover, new products, processes, and distribution conditions should contribute to increasing fruit and vegetable consumption, improving the quality of products, and minimizing energy and water consumption, as well as losses and waste. Fresh produce can be microbiologically contaminated throughout the supply chain, from production, processing, transporting, storage, and sale sites to our kitchen benches. Although consumers demand minimally processed or “fresh-like” food products, adequate processing must be ensured to guarantee product safety. In order to improve the quality of horticultural products, there are certain post harvest treatments given to the horticultural commodities. These treatments include: Coating Degreening Hot water treatments Vapour heat treatment Curing Packaging

1. Improvement in the Quality of
Horticultural Produce
By: Prof. Parshant Bakshi
Faculty of Agriculture, IPB University, Indonesia
7th November, 2023

2. Speaker Introduction
✉ parshantskuastj@gmail.com
📞 +91 - 9419101601
https://www.krishisandesh.com
 Dr. Parshant Bakshi, Professor & Head, Fruit Science
SKUAST-Jammu, J&K UT, India is having more than 20 years
of experience in research, teaching & extension activities. He
visited Indonesia, China and Thailand.
 Dr. Bakshi is having more than 120 publications in national
and international journals of repute.
 He has been adjudged for best poster and oral presentation at
various national and International platforms.
 He has guided 14 research students (08 M.Sc. and 06 Ph.D.)
as chairman and 34 as co-chairman and authored 8 books and
9 manuals.
 He handled 03 externally funded project as P.I. and 14 as Co-
P.I. He is the life member of 12 societies of Horticulture and is
the fellow of Hi-Tech Horticultural Society.
 He has RG score of 25.64; h-index 14.0 and planted 12,000+
fruit plants under Save Horticulture mission and awarded.
 The Walk and Talk video in Strawberry was awarded Best
Video by MANAGE, Director

3. • Overview
• Coating
• Degreening
• Hot water Treatment
• Vapour Heat Treatment
• Packaging
• Conclusion
3

5. INTRODUCTION
• Fruits and vegetables consumption is essential to a healthy diet, reducing the risk
of cancer, diabetes, and heart disease.
• They are known as Protective food as due to good source of vitamins, minerals,
phytochemicals, and fiber.
• The parts of fruits that are usually not consumed, such as peel, seeds, and
pomaces, are also rich in these compounds.
• Strategies to transform and include them in the food chain should be considered a
global approach to achieving sustainable development goals (SDGs).
• Moreover, new products, processes, and distribution conditions should contribute
to increasing fruit and vegetable consumption, improving the quality of products,
and minimizing energy and water consumption, as well as losses and waste.

6.  Fresh produce can be microbiologically contaminated throughout the supply
chain, from production, processing, transporting, storage, and sale sites to our
kitchen benches.
 Although consumers demand minimally processed or “fresh-like” food
products, adequate processing must be ensured to guarantee product safety.
 Pre-treatments have been widely used in different fruits and vegetables to
improve their stability for consumption and commercialization and extend the
product’s shelf-life.
Prof. PARSHANT BAKSHI, HEAD, FRUIT SCIENCE, SKUAST-Jammu, INDIA

7. In order to improve the quality of horticultural
products, there are certain post harvest treatments
given to the horticultural commodities. These
treatments include:
 Coating
 Degreening
 Hot water treatments
 Vapour heat treatment
 Curing
 Packaging

8. POST HARVEST TREATMENTS
 Treatments which are applied to the agricultural
commodities after harvest for the purpose of
 Preservation
 Conservation
 Quality control
 Storage
 Distribution

9.  Thin layer of material which can be
consumed, provide barrier to oxygen,
external microbes, salute movement for
food.
 In edible coating, a semi-permeable barrier
is provided.
To increase the shelf life by decreasing
moisture, salute migration, gas exchange,
oxidative reaction rate, respiration,
physiological disorder on fresh cut fruits.
COATING

10. Examples
 Fruits: Orange, apple,
grapefruit, cherries, papaya,
lemon, strawberry, mango
and peach.
 Vegetables: Tomato,
cucumber, capsicum and
carrots.

11. Classification of edible coatings
Hydrocolloids Lipids Composites
Polysaccharide,
protein, alginate
Fatty acids,
acryl glycerides,
waxes
Protein/protein,
polysaccharide/protein
lipid/polysaccharides
Methods of Application
-Dipping -Brushing -Extrusion -Spraying -Solvent casting

12. Advantages of edible coatings
 Reduction of weight and firmness loss.
 Maintenance of quality during storage.
 To retard on respiration rate and loss of
chlorophyll.
 Reduction of metabolism and oxidation
rates.
 Reduction of synthetic packaging.
 To retard on ethylene production.
 Best consumer appeal.
 Retention of colour, acids, sugars and
flavour compounds.
Disadvantages of edible
coatings
 Thick coating prohibit
oxygen exchange.
 Cause off-flavour
development.
 Increase microbial growth.

13. Process of removing green colour from the skin of fruit after harvest.
 Ethylene gas is used.
 Only mature fruits are de-greened.
 Level of sugar and acids do not affect.
Example: Citrus fruits
 De-greening is done to change the fruit colour, make the fruit
marketable.
 The practice of de-greening developed 100 years ago and its
success depends on initial peel colour, temperature, duration of
exposure.
DE-GREENING

14. Ethylene De-greening
 Results in destruction of chlorophyll.
 Development of carotenoids.
 Stimulate respiration.
 Stimulate volatile production.
 5 ppm or lower concentration is used.
 Examples: early season navel oranges, lemons,
mandarins.
Disadvantages:
Ethylene de-greeing causes
 Loss of fruit quality.
 Increased weight losses.
 Shorter shelf life.
 More chances of decay.
Advantages:
De-greening with ethylene applied to
 Accelerate the external colour development.
 Make the fruit more attractive to consumer.

15.  Alternative of chemical treatment.
 The eradication of parasites involving immersion in water
at a temperature above the thermal death point of the
parasite below that of the host.
 Applied to firm potatoes, tomatoes, carrots and
strawberries, citrus, mango, asparagus, broccoli, green
beans, kiwifruit, celery and lettuce.
 Hot water treatment can be:
• Short term duration : upto 1 hour
• Long term duration : upto 4 days
HOT WATER TREATMENT

16. Blanching
 Also known as scalding.
 Heating of plant food material in hot water or live stream.
 Ranging in short time for few seconds to few minutes.
 Destroys food enzymes.
Blanching also serves as …
 Loosen the skin of tomatoes.
 Clean the product by removing adhering contaminants.
 Removing tissue gas from leafy vegetables (e.g., spinach)
 Fix green colour in vegetables (e.g., peas, spinach)
 Remove slime forming substances in vegetables (e.g., okra)

17. Advantages
 Maintain quality during storage.
 Preserve colour.
 Reduction in chilling injury.
 Killing of critical insect contamination.
 Control fungal decay.
 Delay ripening process.
 Reduce need of chemical disinfection.
Disadvantages
 Requires investment.
 Requires careful handling.

18. Treatments
Hot water dips
& sprays
Hot water rinse

19. • Effective for fungal pathogen and spore control.
• Control infection on the surface of peel.
• Control decay by killing insects.
• Dip at 46 ºC for 90 minutes.
• Recognized as safe compounds applied in hot water
improve the efficiency of their antifungal action.
• Fungicides: sulphur dioxide and sodium carbonate
• Blue mold caused by Penicillium spp. controlled by
dipping fruit at 50 ºC for 2 minutes.
• In Germany, HWT used in storage of organic apples.
HOT WATER DIPS & SPRAYS

20. Contd….
• Recent extension of hot water treatment is hot water spray
machine.
• Food material moved by brush rollers through pressurized
spray of hot water.
• Speed and number of brushes or nozzles spraying water can
be varied.
• Use high temperature.
• Machine used to clean or reduce pathogen presence on fruit
and vegetable such as mangoes, citrus.
• Use disinfecting insects.
• Immersion time is 1 hour or more, temperature below 50ºC.

21.  Apply to several fruits & vegetables.
 Reduce decay development.
 Maintain quality.
 Prolong storage & shelf life.
 High temperature 45-62 ºC.
 Revolving brushes for short time at 15-25 ºC.
 Reduce microbial growth.
 Decay development and weight loss.
 Improve appearance.
HOT WATER RINSE

22. contd…
• HWT for mango fruit
 to minimize fruit fly and stone weevil damage.
 immerse mango in water bath at 48 ºC for 45-60 minutes.
• HWT for pineapple plantlets for transplanting
 control mealy bugs, phytophthora and nematodes on
pineapple plantlets.
 HWT at 50 ºC for 30 minutes to 2 hours.
• HWT for banana suckers
 helps against banana weevil.
 before planting, clean sucker at hot water bath at 52-55 ºC
for 15-27 minutes.

23.  An effective non-chemical method of treatment.
 Widely used to treat mangoes and other fruits.
 Produce at a certain temperature for fixed time period.
 Destroys larvae of fruit fly inside the fruit.
 VHT can be done by
 air saturated with water vapour.
 at temperature of 40-50 ºC.
 heat transfer by condensation.
 on the cooler fruit surface.
VAPOUR HEAT TREATMENT

24. Curing is applied to the measures used
to prepare starchy, staple root crop and
onions for term storage.
Have two types
 Curing of roots and tubers.
 Curing dry bulb onion.
CURING

25. Curing of roots and tubers
 Irish potato, sweet potato, winter squash, cassava, garlic etc.
 Cure garlic and onions.
• At temperature 70-85 ºC at 70% humidity.
• About two weeks, or until the necks are dry & tight.
 Potatoes
• Cured a bit cooler at 55-65 ºC and 95% humidity.
• Two-three weeks.
 Sweet potatoes
• Hot-cure at 85-90 º C and 90% humidity.
• For a week.

26. Onion bulb curing
 Carried out immediately after harvest.
 It is a drying-out process.
 Done by two ways
a. Natural curing
• takes place after harvest under sun.
• least expensive way.
• enhance onion quality.
b. Artificial curing
• forcing heated air around onion.

27. Packaging is the science, art and technology of enclosing or
protecting products for distribution, storage, sale and use.
Aim of packaging:
 Environmental contamination
 Physical damage
 Microorganisms
Conventional packaging limits the harmful environmental
exposure of fruits and its difficult to monitor quality during all
stages of fruit.
PACKAGING

28. Several types of packaging materials used in fruit crops are
a. Natural materials: baskets and other traditional containers
are made from bamboo, straw, palm leaves etc.
b. Pallet bins: use to move produce from the field to
packaging unit.
c. Wooden crates: once extensively used for apple, stone
fruits etc.
d. Corrugated fibre board: manufactured in many different
styles & weights. It is the dominant produce container
material.

29. Packaging should posses anti-oxidative and microbial
properties, so, advancements in packaging technology includes
 Active, sustainable or green packaging
 Intelligence or smart packaging
 Biopolymer based packaging
 Nanotechnology based packaging
These innovations further improved fruit quality, fruit safety
and shelf-life of fruits.
ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY USED IN FRUIT
PACKAGING

30. Active packaging
 Antimicrobial
 Modified atmospheric package
 Antioxidants (BHT, BHA)
 Emitters (CO2)
 Captures (H2O, CO2)
Intelligent or smart packaging
 Humidity indicators
 Time temperature indicators
 RFID- based sensors
Biopolymer based packaging
 Biobased
 Bioplastics
 Biodegradable
Nanotechnology based packaging
 Zinc oxide, Copper oxide
 e-nose and e-tongue
Technologies
for Packaging

31.  Active packaging materials are designed to inhibit microbial
growth and reduce the undesirable chemical reactions, to modified
the packaging environment in order to extend shelf-life of fruit.
 Oxidation is the second cause of spoilage after microbial growth.
Fruits with high lipid content are susceptible to oxidation.
 Antioxidants inhibit oxidation by neutralizing singlet oxygen,
reducing hydrogen peroxide, decrease free radicals from
headspace of the package.
 Antioxidants like butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) or butylated
hydroxyanisole (BHA), carboxymethyl cellulose etc.
ACTIVE PACKAGING MATERIAL

32. Moisture absorbers
Moisture absorbers absorb water from the surrounding
environment and suppress the microbial growth and prevent
from foggy film formation.
Types of moisture absorbing materials
Inorganic: silica gel, natural clay (zeolite), calcium chloride,
magnesium chloride, aluminium chloride, calcium bromide
Organic: sorbitol, fructose, cellulose and their derivatives,
diethanolamine or triethanolamine.
Polymer based: starch copolymers, polyvinyl alcohol, absorbent
resin.

33. Smell capturers: These capturers absorb unwanted gas
molecules from the package, which is created by fruit chemical
metabolites, microbial and deterioration of fruits.
Modified atmosphere packaging: This packaging modifies the
composition of gas inside a package in order to extend shelf-life
and improves fruit quality, so, can be considered as an active
packaging.
 Lowering the amount of oxygen level (leads to inhibition
of the growth of spoilage causing microorganisms).
 Increasing the amount of CO2 (leads to the killing of
microorganisms).

34. Sensors and indicators that sense some molecules and correlates that
molecules with fruit
 Freshness
 Ripeness
 Leak
 Microbial pathogens
Emitted gases which finally correlated to the safety of the fruits
being consumed.
Thus, intelligent packaging allows for the use of real-time
monitoring until the product/fruits is delivered to the customer.
SMART/ INTELLIGENT PACKAGING

35. Classification of sensors for monitoring freshness of fruits
Direct freshness sensor
Detects a particular analyte
directly from the fruit as an
indicator for fruit freshness
like ripeness, spoilage,
microbial etc.
Indirect freshness sensor
It is based on indirect
detection of fruit
degradation due to certain
freshness parameters such
as temperature and time.

36.  Nanotechnology or nanoscience uses materials and structures in the
nanoscale range (usually 100nm or 10-9m).
 These materials have the same chemical composition, but have
different physical and chemical properties due to their very small size
and have a high surface to volume ratio and surface activity.
 There are different types of nanomaterials:
A. Based on the physical and chemical properties: metallic NPs, magnetic
NPs, lipid-based NPs, semiconductor NPs.
B. Metal oxide nanoparticles: zinc oxide, copper oxide, silver, titanium
dioxide, magnesium oxide, and CuO act anti-microbially by inhibiting
biofilm formation.
C. Nano emulsions: combine with naturally occurring antimicrobial agents,
such as essential oils, & interact more with microbial cell membranes,
causing the death of microorganisms.
NANO TECHNOLOGY

37. e-nose and e-tongue
 The electronic nose and electronic tongue are functionally in
similar ways as in human sense smell and taste.
 The smell of volatile and taste of non-volatile component
actually gives information about quality and shelf-life of fruits.
e-nose comprises four components such as
 Sampling headspace system
 A sensor array
 Electronic data control system
 Pattern recognition software

38.  Substances from living organisms are used for making
biopolymer to create packaging materials like polysaccharides,
proteins, phospholipids or even natural nanoparticles to make
biodegradable packaging material.
 Advantage of using biopolymers to make packaging materials
is that waste material from the food industry can be converted
into functional ingredients. Hence, improving economic
viability.
BIODEGRADABLE PACKAGING MATERIALS

39. According to the European Bioplastics Organization, plastic
materials are divided into 3 groups:
 Bio-based (non-degradable and biodegradable)
 Bioplastics (they are biodegradable and origin from fossils)
 Biodegradable (they are formed by living organisms)

40. CONCLUSION
 In a changing and developing world, demands
for horticultural produce is increasing due to
growing population, however, there are some
issues such as freshness, shelf-life, supply chain
related to fruit packaging.
 Technologies provide promising solutions to
overcome these issues.
 However, challenges of the technology are faced
by the industry in terms of infrastructure, cost
and life cycle of the sensors.

41. 6. Hydrocolloids are made up of _________________________
3. __________ and ___________ are known as Protective foods
4. __________ is used to increase the shelf life by decreasing moisture, respiration and
physiological disorder on fresh cut fruits.
5. ________________ is used for degreening of citrus
1. Fresh produce can be microbiologically contaminated throughout the supply chain from
______________, _____________, __________, and ___________
2. The quality of horticultural products can be improved by ______________ treatments.
7. Hot water treatment is used for ___________ .
8. Blue mold caused by ____________ spp. can be controlled by dipping fruit at 50 ºC for 2 minutes.
9. Sorbitol and Fructose are ___________ moisture absorbing material.
A Quick Recap
Prof. PARSHANT BAKSHI, HEAD, FRUIT SCIENCE, SKUAST-Jammu, INDIA

42. Call: +91-9419101601; + 91-7889621152
Email: parshantskuastj@gmail.com
Website: www.krishisandesh.com

44. Thank You
Prof. PARSHANT BAKSHI, HEAD, FRUIT SCIENCE, SKUAST-Jammu, INDIA