The fruit and vegetable sector can save on quality and storage by keeping the air humidity around fruits and vegetables high. The saves both money and the quality of the products. These are the two main conclusions in the recently published Fresh Demo Project. In it ten fruits and vegetables were followed after harvest, through the chain to the shelves of the supermarket and misted throughout. The shelf life of strawberries (+20%), wild peaches (+13%), grapes (+15-25%), nectarines (+6%), cauliflower, endives and asparagus all improved (considerably) to some extent. It also became clear that the final stop, the supermarket, profited considerably. The mist blanket has a natural cooling effect and ensures there is less decay. The supermarket saves money from day one and in the end the consumer profits, they have a noticeably fresher and more healthy product. "The technique is 100% safe," ensures Rogier Klein Sprokkelhort of Contronics Engineering.
Pieter van Gurp of Plus Van Gurp from Roosendaal has had various Contronics mist installations in his supermarket since 2013.
Favourable
Dry-mist lays a blanket of moisture over the products, which penetrates into every nook and cranny of the shelves. All products profit from it, not just those on top, measurements show. This means the total saving in fruit and vegetable decay can go up to an average of 25%. The high humidity also has a favourable effect on nutrients, aroma and flavour, and the misted products lost less moisture, 72% for strawberries.
Safe
Mist isn't hard to make, Rogier explains. "By using ultrasonic vibrations, the water is misted, the droplets are so small that they evaporate immediately. This has two advantages. Mist ensures the hydration of the products without them getting wet, hence the name dry-mist technology. Too much moisture would stimulate rotting and mould growth. As the mist evaporates quickly, it pulls heat from the environment so that it is cooled naturally. Very important is that the installation is fully hygienic. The misting technique isn't complicated but does have the functionalities that ensure it can be safely applied to food. We have over 26 thousand installations all over the world and nothing has happened."
Contronics mobile mist installation
Mobile
Contronics Engineering already supplied mist installations for cooling and storage facilities and supermarket stores. A transport mister was developed especially for the Fresh Demo Project. "To make the mist a water reservoir is needed and it can't spill or slosh on the way," says Rogier. "This innovation is already in production and this makes it possible to mist the entire supply chain, from harvest to sale. The products remain so fresh that it's like the consumer is harvesting them from the shelf. When all partners in the chain work together we can really take a step forward in preventing food waste. This has been shown at the Fresh Demo Project."
Difference between strawberries with (r) and without (l) mist blanket after transport
Innovation
The fruit and vegetables for the Fresh Demo Project were transported for a number of days: strawberries (from Spain), asparagus (from northern Germany), nectarines and peaches (central Italy), grapes (southern Italy) and cauliflower and curly endives (Spain). They were transported either to Bremerhaven or Plus van Gurp. Regular transport was constantly compared to misted products. An example: misted strawberries still looked freshly picked after three days of travelling to Bremerhaven, whilst those from the parallel regular transport were almost unable to be sold. An addition to the mist was also looked at during the Fresh Demo Project, which slows the bacterial and mould growth on the products. Rogier: "This addition, Formula 5, was developed by the Greek Polypan. It's a natural extract (bioflavonoid), which is present in the peel of the Bergamot orange and protects the fruit against diseases. By applying this special mist directly after harvest, we were able to further extend the shelf life."
Saving
Individual businesses also profit from the dry mist technology, says Rogier. A calculation by supermarket Plus Van Gurp in Roosendaal, showed that the investment in the technology saves him around €16,000 per year. Danish university DTU compared the fruit and vegetable turnover and decay in Plus Van Gurp with and without misting. Misting decreased the amount of waste fruit and vegetables by 25%, increased the turnover, used less energy and saved on labour.
The calculation for Plus Van Gurp
Click here for the Fresh Demo Report
Click here for the folder of the Fresh Demo Report
For more information:
Contronics Engineering
Rogier Klein Sprokkelhorst
Ambachtsweg 8
5492 NJ Sint-Oedenrode
T: +31(0)413-487000
rogier@contronics.nl
www.contronics.nl
Plus Van Gurp
Pieter-Jan van Gurp
Tolbergcentrum 172
4708 HK Roosendaal
T: +31(0)165-563770
vangurp@plus.nl
www.plus.nl