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HYDROCOOLING APPLES 



Wi 1 1 iam J . Braml age 

 Department of Plant and Soil Sciences 



Drs. H.A. Schomer and G.A. Patchen of the U.S. Department of 

 Agriculture, Wenatchee, Washington, recently published a report en- 

 titled, "Effects of hydrocooling on the dessert quality and storage 

 life of apples in the Pacific Northwest." In their study. Red De- 

 licious (Starking), Golden Delicious, and Winesap apples were ei- 

 ther hydrocooled to a core temperature of 40 F or to 40 at a depth 

 of 1/2" in the fruit, or else air-cooled to a core temperature of 

 35 F in 3, 7, 14, or 28 days. The apples were all stored at 30-31°F 

 and evaluated for quality and condition at intervals from November 

 to as late as August. Quality evaluations included firmness, sol- 

 uble solids, acidity, and the use of a taste panel. 



The tests showed that the hydrocooled fruit and the fruit that 

 Were air-cooled in 3 or 7 days were comparable in quality and stor- 

 age life expectancy. However, those fruit requiring 14 or 28 days 

 for cooling to 35 were inferior, especially the Red Delicious which 

 became unfit for consumption. It is interesting to relate these 

 findings to an earlier report by Dr. Blanpied in New York ( Proc . 

 Amer. Soc. Hort. Sci . 70:58-66). In comparing hydrocooled Mcintosh 

 to ones air-cooled in 3 days or in 1,2 or 3 weeks, Blanpied found 

 clear differences in favor of hydrocooling during the first 3 

 months of storage, but after 4-5 months storage, hydrocooled fruit 

 were comparable to those air-cooled in 3 or 7 days. 



The results of these tests indicate that for long-term stor- 

 age of apples, hydrocooling offers no advantage to the fruit over 

 air-cooling, unless the fruit cannot be cooled within a week by air. 

 However, it should be noted that the use of hydrocooling can con- 

 siderably reduce the requirements for refrigeration capacity in the 

 storage, since "pull-down" requires much more capacity than is 

 needed for temperature maintenance. 



The publication by Schomer and Patchen 

 tained free from the Office of Information, 

 20250. 



(ARS 51-24) can be ob- 

 USDA, Washinton, D.C. 



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LET'S AVOID A TRAGEDY 



El 1 sworth H . Wheel er 

 Professor of Entomology 

 Leader, Pesticide Chemicals Program 



Young children are poisoned by pesticides more frequently than 

 any other age group. Improper storage of pesticides and unsafe dis- 



