The shortage for fresh fruits and vegetables is sequentially increasing day-by-day as well as the preservation is still challenging the food industries as they’ve ability to respire.
In horticultural produce, packaging is necessary, not even to enhance the aesthetic value but to maintain the fruits and vegetables from contamination. The process of preparing the layer of enclosure on fruits and vegetables with plastic bags, baskets, palletized containers before exporting or selling it, to the consumers.
The proper packaging of fruits and vegetables expands the storage duration by preventing the moisture loss and thereby wilting. The amount of moisture loss differs with the water vapour permeability of the packaging material and the product. Perhaps, incorrect packaging of fruits and vegetables may accelerates the spoilage of the goods due to micro-organisms.
Even though, fruits and vegetables vary in shape and size, that needs certain strategies and characteristics for packaging the fresh produce.
- Good containment
– That encloses the product from external environment as well as fruits and vegetables able to fit well in it with little wasted spaces.
- Better protection
– protects from mechanical damage and poor environmental condition during handling and distribution of goods.
- Distinctive moisture barrier
– too low moisture level, concludes the drying of fruits and excessive moisture level, generate microbial growth in it.
Categories of Packaging Material Involved
Packing and packaging material generating the significant cost to the produce industry and making the packers, buyers and consumers able to knew the wide range of packaging options in it.
- Flexible sacks/nets – suitable for hard produce such as coconuts and root crops (potatoes, onions, yams)
- Wooden crates – resistant to weather, having better ventilation and efficient for large fruits.
- Fibre-board boxes- feasible to handles, light-weight, accessible in different sizes and colours, that get more attention towards the consumers.
- Plastic crates – able to use for many times, variant sizes and colours, and give rare resistant to adverse weather conditions
- Pallet boxes – efficient for transporting the goods from the field to the packing house or handling goods
- Bamboo baskets – even today, widely used in many transport packs for domestic market. It is available in different shapes, sizes and designs, but don’t have rigidity and stickability for long distance transport.
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