Industrial Controlled Atmosphere Storage Systems

2. What are the various methods used to protect sensitive crops from damaging low temperatures? Explain why each method works.

During my high school years, I recall working in the fields during vacation breaks with my mother harvesting tomatoes, picking up cherries, and pruning grape vines. Fascinating as it sounds, I was always intrigued to understand why fruits and vegetables spoil or often cause food poising in humans. Although, when I questioned my mother why these fruits spoil, she responded it was due to “little bugs,” which was not a sufficient response.

Jars of pickles, jellies, fruit, peas, beans, corn, were canned to sell and for personal consumption. Nothing went to waste. If it wasn't preserved, fruit was stored in bins in a root cellar dug into the ground. The cellar was about three feet deep and enclosed by cement. The coolness of the enclosure and the surrounding earth were very effective in preserving food over many months. Not only was preserving food economical, it also provided for a more varied diet over the winter months in a time when the selection at the local grocery store

In early findings of experiments performed by a group of USDA scientists, deficit irrigation (reduced H2O), produced either equal to better quality fruit after two underwatered years.

In this project I will try to find out if the plants will grow better normally or in the aerogarden. I will see how the aerogarden affects the plant growth. I will plant strawberries in both of the systems and see which plants grow faster. I will record the growth every single week. Then I will put it on my project.

Agricultural land-use patterns today differ from those developed by von Thunen’s model in 1826. Various factors contribute to these changes such as an increased predominance of technology for food reservation and improved transportation. In the past, the spoiling of various fruits and vegetable was highly dependent of the distance of the farm to the urban center. During that time, dairy and fruits would be located near the center of a large urban area so the can be sold before they spoil. Now, technology has improved drastically since 1826, which has resulted in changes in agricultural-land patterns. Modern technology has allowed refrigeration, chemicals, and other methods to preserve freshmen of foods for extended periods of time. Now, with

CHAPTER 1: Controlled Environment Agriculture and Hydroponics: Past, Present and Future The Plant How to grow greenhouse crops Plant Protection: Insects and Diseases Basic Principals of Hydroponics Transplant Production Pollination, Fertilization and Bee Management Fruit Harvesting, Grading and Storage Plant Nutrition and Nutritional Disorders Fertigation Systems and Nutrient Solutions Greenhouse Site Selection Greenhouse Structures Greenhouse Control Systems Greenhouse Energy and Resource

Different species require different threshold amounts of chill to break dormancy. Frequently, these chill requirements are defined according to different chill models resulting in chill thresholds reported in different units (e.g. Table 2). For instance, Ghariani and Stebbins (1994) reported chill thresholds for 43 apple and 38 pear varieties using the Utah model (measured in chill units); Zhang and Taylor (2011) determined chill requirement for Sirora pistachio using the Dynamic model (measured in chill portions) and; Baldocchi and Wong (2008) used thresholds defined in chill hours for 18 fruit and nut varieties to investigate future chill conditions in California. Cherry specific thresholds are contained in Table

Before the 1870’s canning industry, food was not shipped across the United Sates; it was consumed locally. Back then the local farmer’s had a market; with the grit in their teeth, soiled hands and pants, and their backs to the sun, the farmer knew that if they grew a certain amount of food they could take it to market and sell it for a profit. Though farmers could be content, they also knew that from every harvest a portion of crop would spoil before it reached

Widmer and Associates has been a dealer for Stoller products for the last 30 years. The Stoller company started out as a micronutrient and fertilizer manufacturer. Jerry Stoller realized there was something more to increasing crop yields than just proper fertilization alone. It seemed that the stress that weather places on a plant can be more profound than adequate fertilization of a crop can overcome. Natural plant hormones and their roles and effects that seem to have as great of an effect on yields as soil fertility. This is the same thought process we have at Widmer and Associates. Stoller scientists recognize certain principles in crop production that are common to all plant species when exposed to biotic and abiotic stresses. It is not

The significant difference observed in carbon flux rate between acutely exposed cold (5˚C) Hordeum vulgare (barley) and control (21˚C) barley supports our hypothesis, which states that when barley grown at a favorable temperature is acutely exposed to low temperature, the photosynthetic capacity will decrease. Similar results were observed in Garmash (2005) where barley was acutely exposed to 0˚C.

1.3 billion tons of food is wasted every year on the planet, which means that almost half of the food production in the entire world is wasted each year. Food waste appears when food products are being thrown away without having been consumed by anyone. Thus, food wastes can arise directly from the consumer’s house, whenever people forget to eat the food and it starts to rot and they are obliged to throw it, or it may be a result of food losses during the production and transportation processes. In addition, over 30% of the fruits and vegetables in North America are not even displayed in grocery stores because they are not pretty enough. Food waste represents a major issue in today’s world where, inter alia, climate changes are noticeable and

When we ask our students which fresh produce items spoil the quickest in the summer, the list is always pretty close to the same. Some of the most frequent offenders include:

Conventional shipping cartons have ventilation holes which allows air to circulate around the product, but this also allows the produce to continue ripening and exposes to bacteria and pathogens, which contributes to loss. FreshTec’s patented packaging technology employs a breathable plastic liner inside a cardboard carton, which is sealed with a plastic lid. It’s part of a growing segment of food packaging using modified atmosphere technology. The liner and plastic lid slow the amount of oxygen entering the carton and also traps some of the carbon dioxide the produce expels, effectively putting it to sleep for up to a month of travel time. Overall, FreshTec provides more time for produce to reach the market, which reduce the likelihood of loss or waste.

2. What are the various methods used to protect sensitive crops from damaging low temperatures? Explain why each method works.