Online measurement of temperature and relative humidity as marker tools for quality changes in onion bulbs during storage

Abstract

A long shelf life of onions (Allium cepa L.) is of high importance in the onion industry. Onions are dried and stored in large wooden boxes that are difficult to access. Monitoring temperature and relative humidity during these processes is challenging. Moreover, quality may change in storage without being noticed. Therefore, there is a need to find alternative methods for monitoring and controlling the drying and storage processes of onions and to identify early changes in quality during storage. The potential use of online measurements of temperature and relative humidity (RH) in the vicinity of onions was evaluated during drying and long-term storage of six onion batches (four cultivars and three selections of one of the cultivars) in commercial storage. The batches varied in bulb weight, dry matter content, firmness and disease incidence. The dry matter content and firmness decreased during storage, while the respiration rate and incidences of individual and total disease increased. Two of the batches had low storability with high disease incidences and high average temperatures and variations in the RH. The results showed that tracking the temperature and RH in the vicinity of the onions is a promising tool for improving the drying and storage processes in commercial storage and for identifying onion batches with reduced storability early in storage.

Effect of low oxygen stress on the metabolic responses of tomato fruit cells

“…The temperature in the chamber was kept stable at 20 °C with a water jacket. A data logger (Agilent Technologies, Belgium) was connected to the controller of the BOM device for recording the data [ 21 ]. Following the bubble-up and calibration of the cell suspension with a gas mixture, the media’s oxygen depletion was monitored.…”

Individual and combined effects of electrolyzed water and ultrasound treatment on microbial decontamination and shelf life extension of fruits and vegetables: A review of potential mechanisms

“…Fresh and excellent qualities of fruits and vegetables, as well as microbiological safety, have been highly demanding among consumers these days. Food chains have been increasingly perplexing in terms of processing, handling, transportation, and storage for ensuring a safe food supply (Huang et al, 2008; Islam, Körner, et al, 2019; Islam, Wang, et al, 2019). As a result, cleaning and disinfecting fresh fruits and veggies are recommended to minimize rotting pathogens, improve shelf life, and disinfect harmful organisms for safe food (McKellar et al, 2004; Qiang et al, 2005).…”

Postharvest quality monitoring and cold chain management of fresh garlic scapes based on a wireless multi‐sensors system

“…The temperature is one of the critical factors that directly affect the best storage environment conditions, which is very important to reduce the respiratory intensity and metabolic rate for prolonging the storage life of garlic scapes (Zudaire et al, 2019). Another critical parameter, relative humidity, will reduce its quality if the relative humidity is higher and lower than that in the best storage environment conditions in the garlic scapes cold chain (Islam et al, 2019;. The mechanical damage caused by variation can reduce the garlic scapes quality, and the loss during transportation and distribution was also serious (Lu et al, 2019).…”