A REVIEW ON POST-HARVEST PRECOOLING METHODS OF FRUITS AND VEGETABLES

Abstract

Precooling is the process of reducing field heat from fresh produce immediately following harvest in order to slow down metabolic processes and minimize degradation before marketing or storage. In post-harvest systems, precooling is a crucial step in preserving high-quality fruits and vegetables. The upkeep of desirable, fresh, and marketable produce is probably the most crucial activity. There are seven main techniques for pre-cooling fresh produce: evaporative cooling, vacuum cooling, forced air cooling, ice chilling, and room cooling. All methods require the ability to remove the typical heat gain in the facility as well as the refrigeration capacity to lower the temperature of the produce within the required period. The objective of this review is to present the most recent data on precooling techniques and to encourage their use in the fruit and vegetable business. All of these techniques operate using various mediums. Cold air is used in forced-air cooling and room cooling, cold water is used in hydrocooling, ice is directly in contact with items when they are packaged, water evaporates in vacuum cooling, and liquid nitrogen is used in cryogenic cooling. As a result, precooling has been discovered to be the most crucial of all the processes required to maintain any acceptable, fresh, and marketable fruits and vegetable production.