Factors affecting the quality of horticultural produce

Quality of the fruits, vegetables, flowers

and others depend on the various factors
on and off the field of production site such
as
1. Pre-Harvest Factors
2. Harvest Factors
3. Post-Harvest Factors
I Pre Harvest Factors

1.Genetic / variety/cultivar
2.Climatic
1. Temperature
2. Frost
3. Moisture( Rh, RF)
4. Light
5. Wind
6. Hail
3. Tree factors
7. Root stock
8. Planting density
 3. Crop rotation
4.Age of tree/plant
5. Cropping level/ fruit size
6. Training/ pruning
4. Soil and nutritional factors:
1. Type of soil
2. Surface management
Sward/Herbicide
3. Mineral nutrition
5. Use of agrochemicals
6. Pest and diseases
II. Harvest Factors
1. Stage of harvest
2. Time of harvest
3. Methods of harvest
III. Post - Harvest Factors
1. Temperature
2. Light
3. Humidity
4. Water quality
5. Ethylene
6. Ventilation, spacing & packaging
7. Preservatives
8. Growth regulators
 Pre-harvest factors
Storage quality of horticultural produce is influenced by
a large numbers of interacting orchard factors
which are controllable but
climatic factors are uncontrollable and
their variability throughout the season has tremendous effect
on the quality and storage behaviour of commodities
 Pre Harvest Factors
1. Genetic:
 Varieties/cvs with shorter shelf-lives are generally prone to higher
post harvest losses.
 Varieties with thick peel, high firmness, low respiration rate and
low ethylene production rates would usually have longer storage
life.
 The cultivars that have ability to withstand the rigors of
marketing and distribution will have lesser losses after harvest.
 Varieties with resistance to low temperature disorders and/or
decay-causing pathogens can be stored well for longer duration
with minimum storage losses.
 Hence, while growing horticultural crops, one must choose such
varieties that inherently have got
Good quality and storage potential in addition to the
high yield and pest resistance potential.
 Temperature
 Temperature at any point on earth’s surface depends on
 Geographic ordinates of
 Latitude
 Altitude
 Season
 Time of day
 Mediating influence of climate.
 The major factor that determines temperature is
Amount of solar radiations received.
 There is a 2oC decrease in temperature with an 1000 ft
increase in elevation a.m.l.
 Temperature
 All type of physiological and biochemical process related to plant
growth and yield are influenced by the temperature.
 The higher temperature during field conditions decreases life and
quality of the produce.
 At high temperature, stored carbohydrates of fruits, vegetables and
flowers are quickly depleted during respiration and plant respires at
the faster rate.
 The produce which is having higher amount of stored carbohydrates
show longer storage/vase life.
For example-
 High temperature during fruiting season of tomato leads to quick
ripening of fruits on and off the plant.
 Orange grown in the tropics tend to have higher sugars and TSS than
those grown sub tropics. However, tropical grown oranges tend to be
green in colour and peel less easily and it is due to the lower diurnal
temperature variation that occurs in the tropics.
 Temperature
 Light crops are being obtained following the very low or high
temperature during pollination and fruit set which leads to the
development of large sized fruits which have been proved to be
having poor storage quality.
 High temperature coupled with moisture stress condition during fruit
development lead to the small size fruits and also contain low ca and
prone to bitter pit disorder in storage
 It has been found that at low altitude where temperature is high
shape of apple is affected. Eg Golden Delicious apple becomes less
elongated
 High temperature during maturation of apple results the decrease in
the free acid level, low fruit firmness and anthocyanins content but
increase in sugars level.
 Temperature
 Storage disorders like
 Common scald
 Water core
 Core flush
 Bitter pit
are caused due to the abnormally high temperature few weeks
before harvest
 Susceptibility to bitter pit may be associated with irregular water
supply and moisture stress within the plant due to the high
temperature.
 Low temperature few weeks before harvest leads to the low
temperature injury to the apple also favour the development of brown
heart in CA storage
 Temperature
 In coloured fruits warmer days and cool nights during growth are
necessary for the colour development
 Pineapple shows internal browning if night temperature falls below
21oC
 Cox-O-P grown in UK suffers chilling injury below 3oC, whereas ,
the same cultivar grown in New Zealand can be stored at 0 oC
 Light
• Light regulates several physiological processes like :
• Chlorophyll synthesis,
• Phototropism,
• Respiration
• Stomatal opening
• Quality of fruits and vegetables at harvest is affected by:
 Duration,
 Intensity
 Quality of light
• Most of the produce needs high light intensity (3000-8000 f.c.).
Absorption of red light (625-700 nm) through pigments,
phytochrome, is essential for carbohydrates synthesis which
determines the shelf life of the produce.
 The vase life of the carnation and chrysanthemums is longer
under high light intensity than low
 
 Light

 Colour development in apple skin is directly dependent on light.

 It is the uv radiation (10% of total radiation) which is responsible
for the red colour development of fruits especially apple.
 The anthocyanins which give red colour idaen (cyanidin) is
synthesized from sugars
 UV radiations also acts as antifungistatic effects. So apple of higher
altitudes are free of diseases attack.
 It produces O3 from O2 and O3 oxidizes ethylene. So, less ethylene
in fruits where more uv radiation around
 Shading greatly reduces the proportion of red colour of fruits and
carbohydrate level is also reduced because of lower photosynthetic
activity of leaves
 Plants exposed to the optimum light produces fruits with good size,
red colour higher sugars, TSS, better flavour but fruits produced
under shade are having small size , less coloured and lower sugars,
TSS and higher conc. of calcium and potassium
 Light

 Shading has been found to increase significantly core flush and

reduce bitter pit
 Excessive irradiation causes sun scald to the fruits(discoloration
followed by softening of fruit). This is a common problem in
climates with high light intensities
 Difference in day length and light quality affect crop physiology
E.g. Onion varieties developed for short day climates do not produce
large bulbs under long days
 Grapefruit developed under shade had less chilling injury
 Light
 Citrus and mango fruits produced in full sun generally had:
o Thinner skin,
o Lower weight,
o Low juice content
o Lower acidity
o Higher TSS.
 Citrus fruits grown in the shade may be less susceptible to
chilling injury when subsequently stored in cold storage.
 In tomatoes, shading of fruits produced a deeper red colour
during the ripening than in the case of those exposed to light.
 The side of the fruit that have been exposed to sun will generally
firmer than the non exposed side.
 In leafy vegetables, leaves are larger and thinner under
condition of low light intensity.
 In general, the lower the light intensity the lower the ascorbic acid
content of plant tissues
 Humidity

High humidity during growing season results in thin rind

and increased size in some horticultural produce and this
produce is more prone to high incidence of disease during
post harvest period.
Humid atmosphere may cause the development of fungal
and bacterial diseases,
• which damages produce during storage and transport.
• Damaged produce remove water very quickly and
• emit a larger concentration of ethylene than healthy ones.
Low humidity may cause browning of leaf edge on plants
withthin leaves or leaflets.
 Humidity

High humidity can provide the suitable conditions to

water - borne pollutants, as a result are they easily
absorbed through the cuticles or stomata.
Reduced transpiration leads to calcium and other
elemental deficiency.
The rate at which apple loose water and shrivel is
greater following a humid summer than after a dry
one. It may be due to the development of large sized
lenticels
 Water relation and Irrigation

 Stress due to excessive or inadequate water in the medium reduce

the longevity of the produce.
 Crop like carnation require 850 to 1200 g of water to produce one
gram of dry matter.
 In general, <5 % of water absorbed in the plant system is utilized for
the development of different plant components.
 Moisture stress increases the rate of transpiration over the rate of
absorption
 Irregular irrigation/ moisture regime leads fruits/vegetable cracking
(potato and pomegranate cracking).
 Higher level of moisture stress affects both yield and quality by
decreasing cell enlargement.
 Water relation and Irrigation

 Crops which have higher moisture content generally have poorer

storage characteristics.
 An example of this is the hybrid onions, which tend to give high
yield of bulbs with low dry matter content but which have only a
very short storage life.
 If fully matured banana harvested soon after rainfall or irrigation the
fruit can easily split during handling operations, allowing micro
organism infection and PH rotting.
 If orange is too turgid at harvest (early morning) the flavedo/oil gland
in the skin can be ruptured during harvesting, releasing phenolic
compounds and causes Oleocellosis (skin injury caused by rupture of the oil
glands) or oil spotting (green spot on the yellow / orange coloured
citrus fruit after degreening).
 Rainfall

Rainfall affects water supply to the plant and influences the composition of
the harvested plant part.
More the precipitation decrease in sugar, flavor and firmness of apple have
been observed
High rainfall leads to susceptibility to mechanical damage and decay during
subsequent harvesting and handling operations.
On the other hand, excess water supply to plants results in cracking of fruits
such as cherries, plums, and tomatoes.
If root and bulb crops are harvested during heavy rainfall, the storage losses
will be higher.
Wind and hail
• Wind damages the produce by causing abrasions due to rubbing against
twigs or thorns.
– The mechanically damaged produce are more prone to spoilage during post harvest
period and have shorter post harvest life.
 Wind and hail

 Fast winds as well as hot winds affect the pollination which results in the poor
fruit set.
 So lighter crop leads to the production of large size fruits which are more prone to
storage disorder like bitter pit.
 Occurrence of heavy winds results in poor crop setting during the later stage
of fruit development results in the enormous amount of dropping of fruits from
the plants become unuseful, some fruits remaining on the plants gets damaged.
 So, poor quality fruits are produced which become more prone to various physiological
disorders during storage.
 Hailing affect he crop right from the flower differentiation to the harvesting of
crop.
 Hailing during blooming period affect adversely the fruit set.
 Very poor crop sets and the large sized fruits are produced which are prone toe various
physiological disorders.
 If hailing occurs during later stages of fruit development it affects shape of
the fruit adversely.
 Misshapen fruits are produced which have very poor storage quality and are not
suitable for marketing
 Frost
 When temperature fall below 0oC during night chances for frost
occurrence become bright, provided there is no traces of clouds in
the atmosphere
 Early incidence of frost affect the flowering and fruit set which
leads to setting of light crops and produces large size fruits
 Apple produced in these circumstances normally contains and relatively
high content of dry matter and potassium and may also contain lower
than average levels of calcium which become more prone to storage
disorders like bitter pit
 Occurrence of frost during flowering time may kill the ovules on only
one side of a flower. So, uneven growth results in a misshapen fruit
 Uneven apple growth may also be caused by frost damage to skin,
giving rise to cork formation which restrict the development of that
part of the fruit.
 So, ultimately, abnormal shaped fruits are developed and storage life
which is less
 Tree factors
1. Root stock
 Plant vigour and cropping is determined by root stock
 They have profound effects on quality which is well documented in
citrus
 Rough lemon root stock results in
 high yields
 low juice content
 low acid
 low TSS
 Avocado grafted on seedling root stock show wide variations in yield
and quality
2. Age of tree/plant
 Older the plant smaller and poor quality of fruit
 Tree factors
3. Pruning and training;
 Heavy pruning leads to more vegetative growth which results in
lesser number of fruits set with large size having poor storage life
 Fruits which are exposed to high light environment possesses higher
TSS, acidity, fruit size, aroma, and shelf life compared to which lies
inside the canopy.
 Hence better training system should be practiced to circulate optimum
light and air.
4. Cropping level/ fruit size
Heavy the crop smaller the size of fruit with poor storage
quality
5. Fruit thinning – increases fruit size but reduces total yield.
It helps in obtaining better quality produce
 Soil and nutritional factors:

1.Type of soil: Clay, loam, sandy, clay loam

2.Surface management
Sward/Herbicide/clean cultivation
3.Mineral nutrition
 Balanced application of all nutrient elements is necessary for :
Maintaining growth and development of the plants.
 The application of fertilizers to crops influences their
post harvest respiration rate.
 Excess or deficiency of certain elements can affect
crop quality and its post harvest life.
 Numerous physiological disorders are also associated with mineral
deficiencies which ultimately lead to post harvest losses.
 Nitrogen
High N level
Increase the metabolic rates and reduces fruit quality and
storage
Fruits are larger, greener, soft and low in TSS
Fruits are subjected to preharvest drop
Fruits are more likely to be affected with cork spot, internal
browning and internal breakdown
Fruits have low ca status
Decrease flavour, TSS, firmness of the fruit
Increases physiological disorders
Decrease fruit colour in coloured fruits.
Poorer keeping qualities as it increases fruit respiration,
faster tissue deterioration thereby reducing their storage
life.
 Phosphorous

Low P
 It leads to internal breakdown
 Increases cell size and decrease the phospholipid level
 High rate of production of volatiles
 Exaggerates ca deficiency
 Alter the post harvest physiology of some produce by
affecting membrane integrity, respiratory metabolism.
 The respiration rate of fruits is higher than that of high
phosphorous fruits during storage

High P
 May risk the precipitation of Ca phosphate at root surface and results in Ca
deficiency
 It acts as antagonist to Ca
Normal P
 Minimizes weight loss, sprouting and rotting in bulb crops
.
 Potassium
Low K
 Severe deficiency causes leaf scorch affect the photosynthesis
 Acid content in fruit reduced
 Anthocyanins synthesis lowers down
 Its deficiency can bring about abnormal ripening of fruits and vegetables
High K
 Increases softening in fuits
 Becomes the cause of scald, bitter pit and breakdown and core flush
 Reduces storability
 Moderate to high K improves PH life and quality of anthurium, cut flowers and
many horticultural produce
Normal K
 Potassic fertilizers improves keeping quality,
 Potassium helps in reducing some physiological storage disorders,
e.g. superficial rind pitting in oranges.
 Application of K in water melon tend to
decrease the PH respiration.
•
Calcium
•Maintain adequate protein synthesis in fruits
• Counter the detrimental metabilic effects of high N in fruits
•Acts as intra cellular messenger and controls cell functions
•Involved in the disease resistance by complexing with phenols complex
•Inhibits pectic enzymes
•Prevents the physiological disorders of storage like: bitter pit in apple,
blossom end rot in tomatoes, tip burning in lettuce
•Storage potential of the fruits is largely dependent on the level of Ca and
it is associated with produce texture.
•The higher level of N, P and Mg and low levels of K and Bo
lead to the Ca deficiency in fruits and reduce its storage life.
• Reduction in calcium uptake causes lateral stem breakage of poinsettia.
 Calcium
Calcium treatment
 Delays ripening,
 Delays senescence and abscission
 Reduces susceptibility to chilling injury,
 Increase firmness
 Reduces decay subsequent to storage in
avocados and
 Improves the quality.
 Increases vit c content
 Boron
 It facilitate sugars translocation
 Improves the mobility of Ca in the leaves and to the fuits
 Increases fruit firmness, TSS , organic acids, ascorbic acid
 Improves yields and reduces fruit weight loss in storage
 Reduces incidence of draught spot and cracking
 Reduces bitter pit and corking disordesr in apple
 Zinc
 Zinc Chloride is known to act as a vehicle for carrying ions across the
tissues
 An increase in fruit Ca occurs from Zn folliar sprays
 Deficiency causes sharp decrease in levels of RNA and ribosomes
content of cell, leading to inhibition of protein synthesis
 Zn show interaction with NAA and boron
 Stimulate starch formation and hence sugars
Table: Storage disorder and storage characteristic of Cox's Orange
Pippin apple in relation to their mineral content

Disorder Composition (mg 100 g-1)

N P Ca Mg K/Ca
Bitter pit     < 4.5 >5 >30
Break down   <11 <5   >30
Lenticel blotch pit     <3.1    
Loss of firmness >80 <11 <5    
Loss of texture   <12      
 Use of agrochemicals

 Pre-harvest application of growth regulators

BA, IAA, GA3,
 Growth retardants like :
B-9, CCC, A-Rest and Phosphon-D
improve quality and longevity of flowers crops
 Application of GA3 @ 50-100 ppm
Improves PH quality of roses by anthocyanin development.
 Application of GA3
Stimulate the accumulation of N, K, Mg and S.
 Pre-harvest spray with
o Alar(1500ppm),
o MH(500ppm), and
o Cycocel(500ppm)
Increases vase life of Aster.
 Use of agrochemicals

 Longevity of tuberose flowers is enhance by the application of

leaf manure, K and GA3
 Use of chemicals on the plants to prevent the pathogen will
have direct impact on extending the postharvest life.
 Generally, if produce has suffered an infection during
development its storage or marketable life may be adversely
affected.
 Banana which suffers a severe infection with diseases such as
leaf spot may ripen pre maturely or abnormally after harvest
and in mango it is rapid postharvest loss.
 Pre harvest application chemicals like MH on onion field
prevent them sprouting during storage.
 Pest and diseases

 Infection by fungi, bacteria, mites and insects reduces

 Longevity
 Consumer acceptability.
 Tissue damage leads to
 wilting and
 Ethylene production and finally early senescence.
 Vascular diseases/stem rot /root rot of floral corps
 hinder the transport,
 affects the quality
 post harvest life

 The potato tuber moth may infest tubers during growth if they
are exposed above the soil and subsequently in the storage.
 Harvest Factors

Maturity at harvest stage determine

compositional quality
storage life
 Some produce reaches at peak eating quality
when fully ripened on the tree.
 But some are picked/plucked mature but not ripe.
 1. Stage of Harvest

• Harvesting can also affect final quality.

• For instance, when fruits and vegetables are
harvested too late or too early in the season,
• Overall taste,
• Texture, and
• Colour may be compromised.
• Maturity at harvest determines the final quality of
produce.
• Harvesting at immature stage leads to
 Qualitative and
 Quantitative losses.
 1. Stage of Harvest
•Immature fruits fail to ripen
 normally with low nutritive values and
 have inferior flavor quality when ripe.
• Over mature fruits are likely
to become soft and mealy with
insipid flavour soon after harvest.
•Many vegetables, like leafy vegetables, and immature fruit-vegetables
(such as cucumbers, green beans, peas, and okras), attain optimum
eating-quality prior to reaching full maturity.
• This often results in delayed harvest, and consequently in produce of low
quality.
•Most of the cut flowers are harvested at the immature stage.
• Roses are harvested at tight bud stage/cracked bud stage than the half open or
full open stage
 2. Time of Harvest
• It is advisable to harvest produce when temperature is
mild as high temperature causes
 rapid respiration rate
 excessive water loss.
• The recommended time for harvest of fresh horticultural
produce is
 early morning hours or
 late evening hours.
• The time between harvesting and delivery to a market
also can damage the quality of the fruit, vegetable or
flower.
 If fresh produce isn't processed quickly
it may also lose nutritional value.
 3. Methods of Harvest

The method of harvesting can also have significant

impact on
 Composition and
 Post-harvest quality of fruits and vegetables.
Sharp tools/ secateurs /harvester/hand gloves/
digger/vibrater/ trimmer should always be used to
detach the fruits/vegetable/flowers from the mother
plant.
Mechanical injuries (such as bruising, surface
abrasions and cuts) can accelerate
 loss of water
 vitamin C
 increased susceptibility to decay-causing pathogens.
 3. Methods of Harvest

• Cut flowers with long stem have

higher post harvest life than
short stem because
shorter stem have less
carbohydrate reserves.
• While cutting cut flowers care should be taken to
give slant cut and
not to crush.
• Slant cut helps in
facilitating the maximum surface area
to absorb water at
rapid rate during vase life.
 3. Methods of Harvest
• Management of harvesting operations, can have
 a major impact on the quality of harvested fruits and
vegetables.
• Proper management procedures include
selection of optimum time to harvest in
relation to
 produce maturity and
 climatic conditions,
 training and
 supervision of workers, and
 proper implementation of effective quality control.
 3. Methods of Harvest
 Factors in the successful post- harvest handling of fruits and
vegetables:
Expedited and careful handling,
Immediate cooling after harvest,
 Maintenance of optimum temperatures during transit and
storage
 Effective decay-control procedures are important
 Attention must be paid to all of these factors, regardless of the
method of harvesting used.
These factors are nevertheless more critical in the case
of mechanically harvested commodities.
 POST – HARVEST FACTORS

Temperature:
Optimal temperature is a major important factor in
determining the PH life of the produce.
At higher temperature
Senescence accelerates
 At lower temperature
 Respiration comes down,
 Ethylene production lowers down
 Multiplication of microorganism does not
take place
 Temperature
 Produce is ideally transported and stored under reduced temperature
maximize longevity.
 However, the effect of reducing temperature on maintaining produce
quality is not uniform over the normal temperature range i.e.
o 0 - 300C for non chilling sensitive produce;
o 7.5 - 300C for moderately chilling sensitive produce;
o 13 - 300C for chilling sensitive plants.
 Normal ripening occur at temperature range of 10-30 0C, but best
quality fruit develops ripening at 20-230C
Light
 It is advisable to illuminate potted flowering plants/cut flower,
plants with 2-3 k lux (200-300 f.c.) with fluorescent and
incandescent to create illumination of red and blue light.
 Humidity

 For maintenance of freshness/turgidity many horticultural produce

should be kept at 80-95% RH.
 Produce start showing wilting symptoms when they have lost 10-
15% of their fresh weight
 The rate of transpiration from the produce is reduced with the
increases of high RH.
 Care should to be taken not to maintain high RH coupled with high
temperature results in faster infection by pathogen.
 Produce should not be stored in dry atmosphere because they
become less turgid through quick transpiration.
Water Quality
 Water quality relates to pH, EC values, hardness contents of
phytotoxic elements and microorganism causing vascular
obstruction affecting longevity of the produce particularly cut
flowers.
 Water Quality

 Saline water decreases vase life of flowers.

 Longevity of flowers reduced when salts concentrations reaches 200 ppm
(roses, chrysanthemum and carnation) and 700 ppm (gladiolus).
 Basic ions like Ca++ and Mg++ present in hard water are less harmful than
soft water containing sodium ions.
 Use of de-ionised water is better than ordinary tap water in enhancing
vase life and even use of boiled water containing less air then tap
water is readily absorbed by stem.
 Use of Millipore filter water enhances flow rate of water through cut stem
and reduction of air blockage from vessel.
 Acidification of alkaline water with H2SO4 and HCL has been found to
increase the vase life of cut flowers.
 At low pH, microbial population in stem of the flowers decreases.
 Acidification of water through citric acid is also helpful.
 The optimum pH for extending the vase life of flowers varies from 4.0 - 5.0.
 Water Quality
Wetting agents/surfactants like Tween -20®/APSA® at 0.1 -0.01%
(1.0ml - 0.1 ml L-1) :
 decrease the surface tension of water
 increase the lateral water flux which removes air bubbles and
 helps to maintain a continuous xylem water column in cut
flowers.
Plant hormones
 Use of Cytokinin (Kinetin, BA and B-9), auxin (IAA) and
gibberellins (GA3 ) will delay senescence of the produce and are
known to be ethylene inhibitors.
 Abscisic acid - ABA accelerate the developmental process associated
with aging and increase sensitivity of the tissue to the ethylene
production.
 ABA is also involves in senescence to increase the permeability of the tonoplast
leading to cell disorganization, resulting in decreased water uptake and
development of water/ion stress effects.
 Preservatives
 In the form of tablet containing a mixture of chemicals such as sugars,
germicides, salts, growth regulators, etc. is being used to extend the vase life
of the flowers.
 Sugars, biocides, anti-ethylene compounds(1-MCP, Potassium
permanganate) and hydrated compound are used for conditioning.
 All sugars used in holding solution make excellent media for the growth of
micro-organism causing stem plugging.
 Therefore, sugars must be used in the combination with germicides in the
vase solution.
 Metallic salts like silver nitrate, cobalt chloride, Al So4 , Zn So4, calcium
nitrate and nickel chloride are used to extend the vase life of flowers.
 Growth regulators such as BA, IAA, NAA, 2.4.5.T, GA3, B-Nine and CCC
are also used.
 Ventilation, Spacing & Packaging
Provision for air circulation must be maintained to
remove respiration heat.
Sufficient commodity spacing should be provided so
that at least one side remains exposed for air
circulation to prevent heat generation.
Only pre cooled products are allowed to be packed,
but there should not be any direct contact between
product and the containers
 Packing and packaging of fruits, vegetables and
flowers
• Preparation of produce for market may be done either in the field
or at the packing house.
• This involves cleaning, sanitizing, and sorting according to quality
and size, waxing and, where appropriate, treatment with an
approved fungicide prior to packing into shipping containers.
• Packaging protects the produce from mechanical injury, and
contamination during marketing.
• Corrugated fiberboard containers are commonly used for the
packaging of produce, although reusable plastic containers can be
used for that purpose.
•
 Packing and packaging of fruits, vegetables and
flowers
 Packaging accessories such as trays, cups, wraps, liners, and
pads may be used to help immobilize the produce within the
packaging container while serving the purpose of facilitating
moisture retention, chemical treatment and ethylene
absorption.
 Either hand-packing or mechanical packing systems may be
used.
 Packing and packaging methods can greatly influence air
flow rates around the commodity, thereby affecting
temperature and relative humidity management of produce
while in storage or in transit.
 Length of Storage
 One of the most significant factors that affect the quality of fresh
produce is storage.
 Making sure that fresh produce is stored at optimum conditions is a
key to retain their quality.
 If it is stored in poor storage conditions such as high temperatures, it
will lose its nutritional value or spoil quickly.
 Storing fresh produce beyond the recommended periods even at
optimum temperature can still cause loss of nutritional value.