Presentation regarding cucumber

1. WELCOME

2. 2
CUCUMBER
Classification
-
Botanical Name Cucumis sativa L.
Family Cucurbitaceae
Order Cucurbitales
Origin Indian Sub-
Continent
Chromosome no. 2n= 14

3. INTRODUCTION
3
• Cucumber is a native of Indian Sub-Continent
• It is precious vegetable crop grown in many parts of the country
especially in tropical and sub-tropical areas.
• In local language it is commonly called as “Khira”.
• According to Ministry of Agriculture and Farmer Welfare, India
produced 1.63 million metric tonnes of cucumber over an area of
1.17 lakh ha in 2021-22 (Third Advance Estimate).
• India had emerged as the largest exporter of gherkins in the
world. India had exported cucumber and gherkins to the tune of
1,23,846 Metric Tonnes with a value of USD 114 million during
April-October (2020-21).
• Nutritively, 100 g of edible portion of cucumber contains 96.3 g
moisture, 2.5 g carbohydrates, 0.4 g protein, 0.4 g fat, 0.3 g
minerals, 10 mg calcium, 0.4 g fiber, 1.5 mg iron and 2 mg
vitamin C .

4. 4
Justification
• Post-harvest loss (PHL) is the measurable quantitative and qualitative
food loss in the post-harvest system which comprises interconnected
activities from the time of harvest through crop processing, marketing
and food preparation, to the final decision by the consumer to eat or
discard the food.
• This work is focused on the evaluation and the comparison of different
post harvest treatments and packaging of cucumber when stored in
zero energy cool chamber and ambient (room) temperature to lower
the postharvest losses of perishable vegetables by preserving them
with a long shelf life, and unaltered nutritional value and sensory
quality.

5. 5
Title Of The Proposed Research
“Effect of different post-harvest treatments and packaging materials
on shelf life and quality of Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.)”
Objectives
1. To evaluate the effect of pretreatments on postharvest life of
cucumber.
2. To evaluate the effect of packaging material on the physiological
characteristics of cucumber.
3. To evaluate the effect of storage conditions on the quality of cucumber
varying with treatments and packaging materials.

6. 6
Technical Program
The proposed study entitled “Effect of different post-harvest treatments and
packaging materials on shelf life and quality of Cucumber (Cucumis sativus
L.)” will be laid out in a completely randomized design (CRD) with three
replications during 2023-24 at Postharvest Laboratory, College of Horticulture,
and College of Post harvest Technology and Food Processing Sardar Vallabh
Bhai Patel University of Agriculture and Technology, Meerut.
Experimental design: Completely randomized design
Number of Treatments: 18
Number of replications : 3
Number of Fruits: 162
Use of Natural Substance: Aloe vera gel, Ginger Extract (5%), Clove Oil
(2000 PPM)
Packaging Material- Rice Paper, Shrink Wrap.
Storage- Zero Energy Cool Chamber, Ambient Temperature

7. 7
Post harvest Handling, Aim and
Result
Post harvest Handling : Cucumber is highly perishable crop which has eminent post harvest losses .
Hence, to overcome this problem, some post harvest operations and treatments which are practiced
after harvesting and before sending produce to the market or in the storage such as sorting and
grading, coating with natural substance (post- harvest treatment), packaging and storage are used to
prevent the post- harvest losses.
Aim : To maintain quality (appearance, texture, flavour and nutritive value),To protect food safety, and
to reduce losses between harvest and consumption.
Result : After harvesting of the fruits, the experiments were carried out to know the effect of natural
substance (post – harvest treatments), packaging and storage on quality of fruits, so that the fruits can
be kept healthy with quality for a longer period.

8. 8
Effect of Aloe vera gel, Ginger Extract, and
Clove Oil on post harvest life of fresh fruits
and vegetables
• Aloe vera gel has the ability of to prolong shelf-life of the fruits and vegetables by minimizing the
rate of respiration and maintaining the quality attributes (colour, flavour etc.).
• Aloe vera gel has anti fungal and antibacterial properties which provides a defensive barrier against
microbial contamination of fruits and vegetables.
• Ginger extract also shows antimicrobial and other biological activities due gingerol and paradol,
shogaols and zingerone. An important finding showed that 10% ethanolic ginger extract was found
to possess antimicrobial potential against pathogens.
• Clove essential oil effectively control the disease incidence of blue mold decay and it also play
important role in reducing postharvest fungal decay in fruits and vegetable

9. 9
Low Cost Storage Unit- Zero Energy Cool
Chamber (ZECC)
• In India, especially in rural areas there is a lack of preservation industry of vegetables.
• Cool storage of perishables is costly due to higher energy input. So, to reduce the operating cost
and minimize the postharvest loss, a low-cost on-farm storage structure is required, especially in
tropical developing nations
• Adoption of the Zero Energy Cool chamber can help in achieving temperatures of 8–10°C lower
than the ambient depending on the environmental parameters. The relative humidity of the Zero
energy cool chamber is ranged from 75% to 99%, which is highly suited for the storage of fruits and
vegetables.
• The Physiological weight loss is higher in freeze storage condition compared to that of ZECC
condition. (Mishra et. al 2020)

10. 1 0
Observation to be Observed
o Mass
o Moisture Content
o Physiological loss in weight (PLW)
o Shrinkage (%)
o Decay %
o Volume
o Density
o Firmness
o Acidity
o Taste Index
o TSS
o Texture
o Peel Colour
o Aroma/Flavor
o Overall acceptability

11. THANK YOU
MIRJAM NILSSON​
MIRJAM@CONTOSO.COM | WWW.CONTOSO.COM