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| Banana
ripening rooms prepare the green fruit for sale
to consumers, but if the fruit is dry, cracks and
spotting occur all too often. Ethylene treatment
itself also dries out the fruit, reducing quality.
And once ripening begins, the race to the consumer
is won. |
| Major
banana handlers recommend 95% relative humidity
for the ripening room. High humidity improves quality
by adding moisture to the fruit, reduces cracking
and bruising, and slows down the ripening process
to extend shelf life. |
| The
Tabor FogRight Atomizer and Optisense Humidistat
provide and control 95-98% RH in ripening rooms,
reliably and with low maintenance. |
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| The
Tabor FogRight Atomizer increases humidity to 95-98%
RH without wetting the fruit. The banana skin actually
absorbs the humidity in the air keeps the fruit
inside moist. The ripening process is extended over
a longer period of time, with higher quality fruit
as a result. |
| The
FogRight uses micro droplets of water to produce
a true "dry fog" that evaporates into the air before
it reaches the ground. |
| The
OptiSense Humidistat uses fiber-optical technology
to constantly sense the RH, up to 98%, and turns
the fogger on and off. Other humidity meters become
saturated over 90% RH. Only the OptiSense can provide
reliable control at this high humidity level. |
| The
fogger system can be installed in rooms with a plenum,
or in open circulation rooms, for storage in packs
or in bulk. The system adds water vapor to the air,
reducing the transpiration rate of the fruit. The
fruit, and the ripening room, remain dry. |
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| Slower
ripening
means longer shelf life. |
| Longer
shelf life
means less loss. |
| High
Humidity prevents brown spots
on the fruit. |
| Flesh
remains firm. |
| Bruising
is reduced. |
| Higher
quality fruit for higher prices. |
| Easy
Installation and low maintenance. |
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| At
Zemach Growers at the Sea of Galliee, cold store operator
Itzhak Itzhaki says " The extra humidity has made all
the difference in our ripening process. The quality of
all the fruit has improved dramaticallly. Apart from fruit
picked in our driest season, we no longer have to take
the risk of ruined shipments. We can add humidity and
be sure the ripened fruit arrives in top condition to
the supermarkets. The system is not cheap - but by saving
the cost of ruined truckloads of bananas, there is no
doubt that it pays off." |
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| Chiquita
Brands Inc. and the North Carolina Agricultural Research
Service sponsored research to re-examine banana ripening
practices in 1995. The research recommendation: |
| "We
feel that the best humidity recommendation for bananas
after transport is to keep the fruit at a constant high
humidity of 95% RH, particularly during the ripening cycle.
It does not appear that a brief period of lower humidity
before gassing causes a decline in quality, as long as
ripening humidities are high. High humidity may delay
ripening slightly, but the advantage of reduced scarring
outweighs this small delay. From our studies, it does
not seem necessary to reduce humidity during ripening
to avoid disease problems, and this practice may be detrimental
to overall fruit quality." |
| -
from "High Relative Humidity after Ethylene Gassing is
Important to Banana Fruit Quality" , Sylvia Blankenship
and Robert W. Herdeman; HortTechnology Apr/June 1995.
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| For
the full research report and more information on ripening
rooms, please contact us. |
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