Presentación 3.3.

Quality assurance program for export markets for Physalis

(Cape gooseberry)

Presentación 3.3.

QUALITY ASSURANCE PROGRAM FOR EXPORT MARKETS FOR PHYSALIS

Work team Flow DiagramFlow Diagram hazard hazard identification and identification and control measurescontrol measures

Determine acceptable levels.

Monitoring

Corrective Measures

Documents and record

keeping

Plan Assessment and

Adjustments.

Determine Control Points

Presentación 3.3.

Assemble the team

• Team of post-harvest technologists.

• Technologist specialized in handling horticultural produce.

Support from producers, exporters, research and development institutes, academia, etc.

Staff members from participating institutes meet to analyse results

Presentación 3.3.

Reference terms:

• Objective: Assure the quality of Physalis, throughout harvesting and post-harvesting, by improving the efficiency of the post-harvest handling systems, to meet the growing demand in international markets.

• Hazards associated with quality losses were evaluated against Codex Alimentarius Standard 226-2001, establishing:

Presentación 3.3.

Minimum trade requirements

• Fruits must be whole (Shape).• Fruits must have the characteristic spherical shape (Shape).• Color of the fruits must be uniform, according to the maturity

specified in the color tables (Uniformity).• Fruits must be fresh in appearance and with a firm consistency,

skin must be smooth and shiny (Appearance/Consistency).• Fruits must be healthy, free from insects and/or diseases

diminishing the internal quality (Pathological damage/insects).

• Fruits must be free from any abnormal external moisture resulting from mishandling in post-harvest (harvest, collection, sorting, grading, adaptation, packaging, storage and transport) (Appearance).

• Must free from foreign matters (soil, dust, agro chemicals and others), visible in the product or package, (Physical/chemical contamination).

• Length of the peduncle must be less than 25 mm (Avoid mechanical damages).

Presentación 3.3.

ClassificationClassification: Regardless of size and color, is classified in three classes:

• Extra Class: produce must conform to all general requirements and be free of defects affecting quality. The calyx may have defects in coloration resulting from moisture and/or fungi (absent). The whole of these defects must be below 5 % of the total area of the fruit.

• Class I: produce must conform to all general requirements and must be free of defects affecting quality, to be traded. The calyx may have defects in coloration resulting from moisture and/or fungi (absent). The whole of these defects must be below 10 % of the total area of the fruit.

• Class II: Any produce not qualifying for the other two categories, but complying with the general requirements for trading. Fruits with healed cracks over 5 % of total area are not permissible. The calyx may have defects in coloration resulting from moisture and/or fungi (absent). The whole of these defects must be below 20 % of the total area of the fruit.

Presentación 3.3.

Produce characteristics:

Physiology: from a physiological standpoint, Physalis shows an intermediate behavior, with increased respiration during ripening of climacteric fruits. Nevertheless, before its actual physiological nature is defined, ethylene production should be studied.

Production periods: Physalis is grown by small farmers, in surfaces not exceeding 2 hectare, using quite conventional technologies. Even if harvest takes place all year long, peaks in harvesting occur in October – November.

Handling the produce: has a relatively low perishability, allowing for greater flexibility in harvesting. For export, Physalis comes with calyx (outside leaves protecting the fruit), index of maturity at harvest time range between 3-5, adaptation processes are basically by hand (sorting and adaptation), packaging in dried cardboard boxes, transport to ports and loading. Most exports are by plane, although with increasing demand, sea shipping is increasing.

Presentación 3.3.

Determining hazards associated to quality impairement

Hazard Fruit Calyx Biological: Resulting from live organisms alien to produce, such as birds, rodents, insects and microorganisms (fungi, bacteria, virus)

- Heliothis (insect)

- Diseased (Cercospora and other fungi)

- Diseases

(fungi)

- Insect

Mechanical: Resulting from cuts, bruises, grazes, drops, distortions from compression.

- Bruised

- Broken - Loose

Physical: Shows under adverse conditions: dehydration, inside drying, whitering.

- Freeze damage

- Transparent - Dry - Spotted.

Chemical: - Evidence of Chemical Residues

- Evidence of Chemical Residues

Physiological: Deficiencies in the product affecting its Development, ripening and other processes, resulting from soil quality, micronutrient, excess transpiration, amongst others.

- Small

- Defective

- Healed cracks

- Small

Source: Estudio Evaluación de pérdidas poscosecha de Physalis. SENA-CIAL-CENICAFE (2002).

Presentación 3.3.

PREPARING FOR HARVESTING

HARVESTING

VEHICLES LOADING

TRANSPORT

EXPORTING PLANT

ROAD SIDE COLLECTING

PLANT

TRADITIONAL MARKET

HARVESTING CONTAINER

HARVESTING

HARVESTING INDEX

TRANSFERRING

COLLECTION

RECEPTION

UNLOADING

TRANSPORT

PACKING AND WEIGHING

DISTRIBUTION

WITH CALIXWITHOUT

CALIX

RECEPTION

UNLOADING

WEIGHING

SELECTION

DRYING

GRADINGEXPORTNATIONAL

WITH CALIXWITHOUT

CALIX

TRANSPORT

Devolución

Transient storage

A

Presentación 3.3.

UNLOADING

WEIGHING

NATIONALL

DISTRIBUTION

DRYING PACKAGING (WITHOUT CALIX)

QUITAR CAPACHO

PUTTING ON TRAYS

STOVE 60°C x 36 h

PACKING BAGS x 20g

GRADING

RECEPTION

TRANSIENT STORAGE

RECEPTION

UNLOADING

WEIGHING

COOL STORAGE

SELLING POINT

DISTRIBUTION CENTER

TRANSPORT

SUPERMARKETSEXPORT

PACKAGING (WITH CALYX)

TRANSPORT

AIRSEA

AIRPORTCONTAINER

LOADING

INSPECTION

PALLETIZING AND PILING

TRANSPORT TO PORT

UNLOADING

PLAN LOADING SHIP LOADING

TRANSPORT

SELLING POINTS DISTRIBUTION

A

PACKING PLANT

Presentación 3.3.

The calyx color is taken as the only harvesting criteria.Calyx color not homogeneous.Not always a relation between calyx maturity and fruit maturity.

Irregular offer/scarce produce. Local market unable to absorb offers from peak productions.

Split or diseased fruit with post harvest pests.

Containers unsuitable for harvest, resulting in damages and low efficiency.

FARM PACKAGING

Putting fruits in baskets (60x40x25 cm.), placed at end of furrow.

Produce is taken the same day for road-side collection.

Problems resulting from a variety of materials, capacities, crop operations efficiency, facilities for cleaning and transferring.

Possible damage to calyx (scars, splits), broken fruits, contaminations, dirty calyx.

FARM COLLECTION

Baskets in the shade and under the Physalis plants, close to the house, under plastic cover or aluminum "tents".

Farmers are consciously protecting fruits from sun and water.

Baskets are placed on the ground (soil, sticks, shrubs).Fruit remains in the farm several hours before collection.

Dirty calyx, long waiting times.

Diversity of containers: jute bag, barrel, basket. Low frequency harvests, only once a week.

PROCESS STEP DESCRIPTION STRENGTHS WEAKNESSES PROBLEM DETECTED

HARVEST

Harvest index: calyx color.

Presentación 3.3.

  

Loading vehicles after mid day.

Crops are close to the Physalis reception plant.

Diversity of vehicles used for transportation. Produce exposed to environmental conditions, increased risks of damage resulting from higher temperatures, ethylene concentration and dust.

A diversity of uncovered vehicles are used. Closed vehicles do not conform to any single standard, without temperature or relative humidity controls and unsuitable loading that may impact on fruit quality.

Unpaved but manageable roads.

Well established logistics for air and sea transportation.

The cold chain is broken when produce is inspected at ports.

Broken cold chain impacts on post harvest life of produce.

ADAPTATION

Reception, unloading baskets, transport (by hand wheel), weighing fruits, temporary storage, selection and grading.

Selection:- Fruits: size, color (yellow and green), split, bruised, soft.- Calyx: size, too thin, spotted (fungi, moisture).

Crossed process flows: space is shared between produce coming in and produce coming out, resulting in handling difficulties and adding potential contamination risks (insects and pathogens). Long waiting times, before conditioning.

Temporary storage areas

Crossed process flows.Storage areas open to outside conditions.Non-ergonomic work places.

TRANSPORT (ROAD SIDE COLLECTION - COLLECTION FOR

EXPORT)

Presentación 3.3.

  

Grading: local and export.

Selection and grading operations take place in ergonomically unfriendly tables used to unload, accommodate and move produce. Grading is done up to three times.

Grading criteria are clear, however, sometimes work is done two or three times, resulting in over handling produce from changing containers to grade the fruit once again.

Fruits graded for export is dried. Worker criteria prevails (Physalis with calyx): yellow (2-3 h) and green (4 - 6 h).

If temperature of fruit does not approximate room temperature, post harvest life could be affected as a result from high transpiration, respiration and ethylene production rates.

Objective drying indexes are not used relating drying time to maturity and post harvest life.Drying times do not take into account fruit maturity index. This results in accumulated air and heterogeneous drying, with a very dry, breakable and still humid

MARKETING

Specialty market: reception, unloading, weighing, distribution to selling points (retail).

Product rotates quickly.

Local: 200 g, 350 g and 450 g (without calyx)/Export 450 g with calyx.

Package must be attractive to the consumer.

PACKAGING

ADAPTATION

Presentación 3.3.

 

Training Adapt. Applied Research

Over ripened fruits/green. Not complying with maturity requirements and not accepted in markets.

X Assess fruit physiology.Assess growth curve and phenol states.Relation between ripening and post harvest life.

Apply results of research defining appropriate criteria for harvest index. Trained workers.

Over supply or under supply of produce results in over ripened or green fruits.

Over ripened fruits/green. Not fulfilling maturity requirements and not accepted in markets.

X Methods to reduce seasonality, planting plans.

Apply results identifying optimum production sites and on crop handling for production seasonality. Step harvest for crops in optimum zones.

Harvest anytime during the day and under rain, fruit picked up from the ground.

Humid and dirty fruit/biological risks enhanced.

X Assess the efficiency of manual harvesting vs. using scissors to optimize harvesting methods.

Trained personnel harvests in appropriate weather conditions.

Harvested fruit is split, diseased or with post harvest pests.

Physiological and biological.

X Assessment of integrated pest and crop managing programs.

Assessment of pre harvest factors on splitting (nutrition, irrigation, etc.).

Apply result of research and trained personnel. ICM and IPM programs enforced.

Containers unsuitable for harvest damage fruit and reduces efficiency.

Biological/mechanical.

X Adapting harvest containers used for similar products.

Use new containers.

FARM

PACKA

GING

Likely damages to calyx (cuts, scrapings), broken fruits, contaminated, dirty calyx.

Mechanical/others (dirty)

X Change packaging

Standardize packaging. Use packaging standard.

HAZARD EXPECTED RESULTALTERNATIVE ANSWERS (CONTROL-PROCES

S STEP PROBLEM DETECTED

HARVEST

Presentación 3.3.

COLEC

Fruit collected in baskets and placed on the ground.

Dirty produce/biological risks enhanced.

X Adapt facilities for farm collection.

Apply transport options. Different trained actors in the chain.

TRANS

A diversity of uncovered vehicles are used. Closed vehicles do not conform to any single standard. There are no controls of temperature or relative humidity. Unsuitable loading may

Physical contamination and handling, speeds physiological damage

X Adequate systems for fruit loading and unloading.

Cost/benefit comparison between refrigerated and cooled transport of fruits from producing sites to exporters

Apply fruit loading/unloading systems.

TRANS

Breaking the cold chain in ports, affects post harvest life of produce.

Speeds up ripening, increases likeliness of biological and mechanical damage.

X X Apply logistically adequate inspection procedures or from exporters directly. Qualified port workers.

Presentación 3.3.

Crossed process flows.Storage areas open to the environment.Non ergonomic work places.

Low process efficiency, biological contamination risks and spoiled produce from lack of protection.

X Adapt facilities.

Product conditioning plants working under appropriate conditions. Trained workers.

Continuous review of needs for planning and adjusting facilities. Trained workers.

Grading criteria are known. Nevertheless, work is sometimes done twice or more resulting in over handling of produce. Upgraded fruits are changed from containers impairing quality.

Mechanical damage.

Training workers and producers in the farm.

Adapt processing to allow graded and packaged fruit out of the farm.

Qualified producers/ operative (simple) farm collection centers.

Follow up implementation (pilot models)

Objective drying indexes are not used relating drying time, maturity and post harvest life. No drying times set according to the fruit

Post harvest life of produce reduced. Appearance impaired breakable

Set a target drying index for Physalis.

A defined drying index to be used by producers in the farm/design of drying prototype approved and applied.

Follow up implementation, Records of training and equipment efficiency.

ADAPTATION

Presentación 3.3.

Estimates show that at roadside collection, 60 % of the fruit produced belongs to class extra and the remaining two 30.3 % to classes I and II. However, after, reclassification 17 % is downgraded from extra to I and II as a result of mechanical damage (bruises) and the amount of very small fruits.

Likewise, 5.8 % of the fruit harvested remains out of the chain, discarded at the farm and resulting from:

45.6 % have healed cracks

9.1 % are split, bruised, etc. (mishandled)

16.6 % maturity index (green fruits)

19.6 % biological damages (basically fungi: Cercospora sp.)

Presentación 3.3.

Why does fruit not meet the requirements for class extra?

• Physiological damage: 10 % fruit damages (split fruits) and 26 % calyx damages.

• Inadequate handling: 35 % on fruits and 18 % calyx.

• Inadequate maturity index: 20 % green and over ripe fruits.

• Biological damages: particularly significant in the calyx up to 28 %.

• Some 8 % of losses from inadequate handling result from a dirty calyx.

• This reference data allow deciding the short, medium and long term solutions to enforce and the proper follow up actions to take.

Presentación 3.3.

measures conducive to sorting out the following points, are critical critical and should be prioritized to enhance the efficiency of the handling chain to meet the quality requirements of the target market:

• Reducing mechanical damagemechanical damage optimizing the process diagram.

• Reducing rejects not meeting the maturityrejects not meeting the maturity requirements.

• Reducing biological hazardsbiological hazards (implementing post-harvest measures, Integrated Crop Management, ICM and Integrated Pest Management, IPM).

• Reducing cracked fruitscracked fruits.

Presentación 3.3.

Length: 20 hours Monday: 6:00-8:00

Session Hours Subject Expected Outcome Strategies Trainer Follow up

1 4 Harvesting Indicators Reduction in the % of over and unripe fruits.

Field demonstrations

Pedro Rodríguez

2 2 Marking aspects to be considered at the harvest time

Optimization of harvest plan

Field demonstrations

Pedro Rodríguez Field worker

3 1 Harvest frequency Optimization of harvest periods

Field visits Pedro Rodríguez Field worker

4 4 Harvesting techniques Reducing mechanical damage, improving harvesting efficacy

Field demonstrations

Pedro Rodríguez Field worker

5 3 Consequences of harvesting inappropriate ripe fruits.

Reduction of rejected fruits

Packing house visits

Pedro Rodríguez Field worker

6 3 Managing of harvest recipients Reducing mechanical damage.

Field demonstrations

Pedro Rodríguez Field worker

7 3 Pre-storage of fruits in the farm-considerations

Quality maintenance Field visits Pedro Rodríguez Field worker

Training plan for harvesters # Participants: 30

Presentación 3.3.

# Orchard Date Volumen of harvested fruit

Vlmen of Rejected fruits

Cause of rejection

Farm name: Filled by:

Presentación 3.3.

Strengthened relations are to be expected, in the short term, amongst the players along the chain resulting in continuous feedbackfeedback between producers, exporters and support institutions.

This will allow for timely corrective actionscorrective actions when the quality improvement targets are not being met for produce selected for export markets.

Corrective actions may be: revise data gathering, strengthen training, increase technology transfers, etc.

Presentación 3.3.

The entrepreneurs will continuously evaluate that the objectives of the action plan are met (monitoring records and customer’s complaints and using other validation procedures) and introduce any required adjustment responding to the market’s signals and opportunities.

For example, quarentenary treatments are currently studied to place products into potential markets now closed. This will surely result in adjusting post-harvest processes and redirecting marketing strategies.