It’s Fresh! technology is being used commercially for the first time in avocados to increase cold storage and shelf life dramatically.
It’s Fresh Ltd is part of the Food Freshness Technology Group (FFT) and has been working on trialling the new product with Cranfield University. Now the ethylene remover is being used on all avocados supplied by Worldwide Fruit, starting with its supplies from Argentina. Simon Lee, director of marketing & strategic development at FFT said: “We have been developing this over four years with our strategic partners at considerable investment.”
It’s Fresh increases cold storage by more than 30 days and further extends shelf life in store for up to six extra days. Fruit is shipped in a standard carton with the ethylene remover sheet beneath it before Worldwide Fruit triggers then repacks the fruit into cell-liners in crates for Tesco.
Steven Deeble, the retailer’s technical manager said: “The next steps will be to extend the technology at the retail level in the loose and Perfectly Ripe ranges.”
Lee revealed that the product is also being trialled extensively on other fresh produce lines including pears.
