Postharvest Biology and Technology of Horticultural Crops: Principles and Practices for Quality Maintenance PDF

PREFACE

Along with the increasing production of agrihorticultural crops, particularly fruits and vegetables, postharvest loss is increasing as well, comprising about 30-35% of total production, due to the absence of proper postharvest handling/storage, preservation, and cold chain infrastructure. The ultimate goal of crop production is to provide quality produce to the consumers at reasonable prices. Most of fresh produce is highly perishable, and postharvest losses are very significant under the present scenario of postharvest management, which is insufficient to meet the requirements in the many countries. Business in the handling, packaging, and storage equipment sectors for agrihorticultural products offers good prospects worldwide. The existing postharvest technology for fresh horticultural produce is traditional, and there is an urgent need for modernization, creation, and popularization of innovations in this sector, especially in areas of fruits and vegetables to reduce large-scale wastage.

Significant achievements have been made during the last few years to curtail the postharvest losses in fresh produce and to ensure food security as well. These include advancement in understanding of breeding horticultural crops for quality improvement; postharvest physiology; postharvest pathology and entomology; postharvest management of fruits, vegetables, and flowers; nondestructive technologies to assess produce quality; minimal processing of fruits and vegetables; as well as innovations in packaging and storage technology of fresh produce. Advancements in postharvest molecular approaches are opening new ways to increase the shelf life of fresh produce.