This book presents a selection of innovative postharvest management practices for vegetables. It covers technologies in harvesting, handling, and storage of vegetables, including strategies for low-temperature storage of vegetables, active and smart packaging of vegetables, edible coatings, application of nanotechnology in postharvest technology of vegetable crops, and more. It considers most of the important areas of vegetable processing while maintaining nutritional quality and addressing safety issues. Fruits and vegetables are important sources of nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, and bioactive compounds, which provide many health benefits. However, due to poor postharvest management—such as non-availability of cold chain management and low-cost processing facilities, large quantities of vegetables perish before they reach the consumer. Furthermore, higher temperatures in some regions also contribute to an increased level of postharvest losses. With chapters written by experts in the postharvest handling of vegetable, this volume addresses these challenges. It is devoted to presenting both new and innovative technologies as well as advancements in traditional technologies.

Advances in Postharvest Fruit and Vegetable Technology examines how changes in community attitudes and associated pressures on industry are demanding changes in the way technology is used to minimize postharvest loss and maintain product quality. In particular, the book discusses important drivers for change, including: Using more natural chemicals or physical treatments to replace synthetic chemicals Increasing the efficiency of older, more traditional methods in combination with newer biocontrol treatments Leveraging a range of biomolecular research tools or "omics" to efficiently gather and assess mass information at molecular, enzymic, and genetic levels Using modelling systems to identify key changes and control points for better targeting of new treatments and solutions to postharvest problems The postharvest handling of fresh fruits and vegetables plays a critical role in facilitating a continuous supply of high-quality fresh produce to the consumer. Many new technologies developed and refined in recent years continue to make possible an ever-expanding supply of fresh products. This volume examines a range of recently developed technologies and systems that will help the horticulture industry to become more environmentally sustainable and economically competitive, and to minimize postharvest quality loss and generate products that are appealing and acceptable to consumers.

Fruits and vegetables, commonly termed as "fresh produce" are an important component of the human diet, as these provide various beneficial and essential health-related compounds. Nevertheless, fresh produce is susceptible to postharvest deterioration and decay along with loss of certain nutrients due to innapropriate storage conditions and lack of standard postharvest technologies. In addition, the short shelf life is considered another major constraint that must be extended after harvest to ensure a wider availability window of the fresh produce for consumers. From this perspective, the use of postharvest approaches is considered imperative to reduce the deterioration of harvested fresh produce in order to extend their storage and shelf life potential on a sustainable basis. Sustainable Postharvest Technologies for Fruits and Vegetables covers various aspects of postharvest technologies with major developments over the recent past and provides a way forward for the future. The sustainable use of various technologies and elicitors could be adapted from farm to fork in order to conserve the eating quality of fresh produce. Therefore, this book covers various sustainable postharvest treatments and technologies that could be considered highly effective for the delay of postharvest senescence and deterioration. Among the various technologies, the use of preharvest treatments, controlled atmosphere, dynamic control atmosphere, modified atmosphere and hypobaric conditions has tremendous potential for the fresh fruits and vegetables industry. In the same way, cold plasma, pulsed light, ultraviolet light, ultrasound technology, nanoemulsions, nano-packaging, electrolyzed water, high pressure processing, ozone gas, irradiations, edible coatings, vacuum packaging and active packaging with slow releasing compounds along with nanotechnology are highly practicable and possesses tremendous potential to be used in the maintenance of overall eating quality and storage life extension of the fresh produce. Key Features: Overviews the major factors affecting postharvest physiology and shelf life potential of fresh produce. Focuses on major sustainable technologies having the potential to maintain postharvest quality and extend shelf life of fruits and vegetables. Describes practical and recent advances of various approaches indispensable for the maintenance of overall eating quality and food safety attainment for fresh produce on a sustainable basis. Covers how quality maintenance and shelf life rely on preharvest practices, nonthermal treatments, storage atmospheres, packaging materials, active packaging, edible packaging, coating application techniques, nanotechnology and ecofriendly plant extracts and natural antagonists.

Various processes are required to preserve and extend the shelf-life of food, many of which cause detrimental effects on the color and appearance of food. Alternative methods for the thermal processing of food are gaining importance day by day due to increased consumer demand for minimally processed fresh-like food products with high sensory, appearance, and nutritional qualities. This new book provides an informative overview of non-thermal food processing technologies that can preserve food color and appearance. The book offers comprehensive coverage of the application of emerging technologies on the color profile of different food products, such as fruits, vegetables, beverages, dairy products, and meat. It discusses the influence and impact of emerging technologies on the color and appearance of foods and beverages, along with their challenges and prospects. The food processing technologies discussed include cold plasma, ultrasound, microwave processing, ozone processing, ohmic heating, pulsed light, UV irradiation, pulsed electric field, high-pressure processing, vacuum frying, and others. This book, Non-Thermal Food Processing Technologies: Impact on Color Profile, offers an important context on applying emerging food processing technologies to solve food safety issues and enhance shelf-life extension while paying attention to food appearance. It is an excellent resource for food engineers and technologists, processors, nutritionists, and food industry professionals for exploring new non-thermal techniques.

The book post harvest technology assumes great attention during recent years since preservation of agricultural produce is a basic necessity to sustain agricultural production. It helps to add value of produce, thus having great scope for employment generation at the production catchments. In this book, the authors have attempted to consolidate different methods of post harvest technology of fruits and vegetables focusing on recent advances. This book will benefit both practicing food technologist/post harvest technologist who are searching for answers to critical technical questions of post harvest technology. Further, it will be useful to agricultural engineers, food processors, food scientist, researchers and progressive farmers and tom those who are working in relevant fields. it is intended to fill a gap in presently available post harvest technology literature

This volume addresses the challenges of the short shelf life of fruits and vegetables. Innovative packaging technologies are the most promising strategies for overcoming these limitations. This book provides a host of sustainable packaging solutions that deliver protection, branding, consumer attractiveness, and speed to market in a competitive retail environment. Key features of the book: • Provides an informative overview of fruit and vegetable requirements and available packaging materials and systems • Provides an understanding of the fundamentals of the impact of packaging on the quality and safety of fruits and vegetables • Covers the fundamental aspects of packaging requirements, including mathematical modeling and mechanical and engineering properties of packaging materials • Presents an in-depth discussion of innovative packaging technologies, such as MA/CA packaging, active packaging, intelligent packaging, and eco-friendly materials applied to fruit and vegetables • Looks at packaging design for better environmental and economic performance

This new volume shares a plethora of valuable information on the recent advances in packaging and storage technologies used for quality preservation of fresh fruits and vegetables. This book, with chapters from eminent researchers in the field, covers several essential aspects of packaging and storage methods and techniques generally used in fruit and vegetables. Important considerations on selection and characteristics of packaging materials, new packaging methods, storage hygiene and sanitation issues along with recent trends in storage technology are discussed in this volume. Key features: Provides an inclusive overview of fruit and vegetable requirements and available packaging materials and storage systems Imparts an understanding of the fundamentals of the impact of packaging on the evolution of quality and safety of fruits and vegetables Includes examples of mathematical modeling and mechanical and engineering properties of packaging materials Provides an in-depth discussion of innovative packaging and storage technologies, such as MA/CA packaging, active packaging, intelligent packaging, eco-friendly materials, etc., applied to fruit and vegetables Packaging and Storage of Fruits and Vegetables: Emerging Trends will be useful for graduate and postgraduate students and teaching professionals of horticultural science, food science and technology, packaging technology etc. It will also provide valuable scientific information to the academic scientific research community as well as to the packaging and storage industries for preservation of quality characteristics of fruits and vegetables. The professional community involved in handling processing and commercialization of horticultural crops will benefit as well.

Focusing on new technological interventions involved in the postharvest management of fruits, this volume looks at the research on maintaining the quality of fruits from farm to table. The volume examines the factors that contribute to shortening shelf life as well as innovative solutions to maintaining quality while increasing the length of time fruit remains fresh, nutritious, and edible. The volume considers the different needs of the diversity of fruits and covers a variety of important topics, including: • factors affecting the postharvest quality of fruits • microbial spoilage • decontamination of fruits by non-thermal technologies • new kinds of packaging and edible coatings • ozone as shelf-life extender of fruits. Emerging Technologies for Shelf-Life Enhancement of Fruits considers the fundamental issues and will be an important reference on shelf-life extension of fruits. Highlighting the trends in future research and development, it will provide food technologists, food engineers, and food industry professionals with new insight for prolonging the shelf life of fruits.