POST HARVEST HANDLING AND SEED TECHNOLOGY

POST HARVEST HANDLING AND SEED TECHNOLOGY

1. CAMC 101 Postharvest Handling and Seed Technology

2. I. Definition: Postharvest handling/ Postproduction- operation undertaken from the time of the crop is detached; from the parent plant up to the time the crop in fresh or whole form reaches the end users. Postharvest technology – constitutes an inter-disciplinary science applied to agricultural commodities after harvest for the purpose of preservation, conservation, quality control/enhancement, processing, packaging, storage, distribution and marketing to meet the food and nutritional requirements of consumers.

3. Primary processing – the removal of unneeded or inedible part of the crop either or not intended to be processed into other product forms. Secondary processing – operations and processes that transform a produce into another form that can no longer be subjected to another change. The main purpose behind postharvest technology is to preserve the quality of the commodity so that it will be acceptable to the consumer.

4. II. Components of a Postharvest Technology In designing postharvest technologies, the interaction of commodity with the physico -chemical and biological factors in the environment should be taken into account. The commodity itself forms the base of the design of postharvest technologies because the response of the commodity to the environment is determined to a large extent by its genetic make-up.

5. Examples of commodity response to various physico -chemical environments: Physico -Chemical Environment Response High temperature Development of internal breakdown in mango Light Solanine production in potato Harvesting late Production of fibrous and tough tissues in okra and patola Harvesting at the green stage Non-climacteric fruits will not ripen Use of wax Decreased transpiration rate of some vegetable crops.

6. III. Characteristics of an Appropriate Postharvest Technology Technically feasible Economically viable Acceptable to all sectors in the handling chain

7. IV. Objectives of Postharvest Technology Improve the people’s diet (developing countries) by increasing the availability of food crops through reduction of postharvest losses without increasing production areas. Reduce the costs and improve the quality of perishable commodities by improving the efficiencies of postharvest handling, transportation, storage, packaging, and marketing practices. Encourage the development or improvement of processing and other industries associated with horticultural and agronomic field crops; farm to market roads.

8. V. Sciences Related to Postharvest Technology Plant Breeding Botany Soil science Plant physiology Agricultural engineering Plant pathology Entomology Food science Statistics Others

9. VI. Advantages of Postharvest Technology Wider choice for consumers More competitive pricing Long term capital inflow Savings on foreign exchange Greater use of raw materials Improved production growth Manpower development and training skills training Development of support sectors-packing, marketing, etc.

10. Biological Aspects of Postharvest Handling General characteristics of fruits, vegetables and cutflowers . 1. Perishables - food crops for which food value is maintained over a short period of time after harvest. 2. Durables- They are food crops which can be maintained as food over a long period of time relative to perishables.