- 6 - 



The farm price of apples for fresh use has shown an upward 

 trend of approximately 2 cents per year since 1951. The price of 

 apples for canning and freezing fluctuated greatly during 1947-1966, 

 with no strong price trend apparent. However, there was some up- 

 ward trend in price of apples used for other kinds of processing, 

 such as for vinegar, cider and juice. Since greater tonnage of 

 apples is being processed at the same or higher prices than in pre- 

 vious years, and the total sales of apples for fresh use has re- 

 mained approximately the same but at a higher per unit price, the 

 value of the U.S. apple crop has increased. Another contributing 

 factor to the increase in crop value is the decline in the propor- 

 tion of the crop abandoned. 



The monetary value of a given-sized apple crop also has been 

 trending upward. Statistical analysis of the crop and price data 

 by Dr. Tomek suggests that the farm-level price demand for apples 

 for fresh use is somewhat price- inelastic, which implies that 

 smaller quantities sold at higher prices would increase total value 

 in a given year. 



*************** 



DOES OZONE REDUCE DECAY 

 OF FRUITS AND VEGETABLES AFTER HARVEST 



Wi 1 1 iam J . Braml age 

 Department of Plant and Soil Sciences 



Ozone (O^) is a gas that is known to inhibit growth of molds, 

 an effect that has been demonstrated many times in laboratories. 

 Therefore, the question of whether or not ozone can be of practical 

 value in reducing post-harvest decay is asked from time to time. 

 Past studies have not always agreed on the usefulness of ozone, so 

 a study of its effects was recently conducted by Dr. D.H. Spalding 

 of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, Maryland. In 

 this study, the effects of the gas were tested on peaches, straw- 

 berries, blueberries, grapes, cantaloupes, and green beans. The 

 results were as follows. 



Peaches : Three varieties of peaches were inoculated with 

 spores of the brown rot fungus or the Rhizopus rot fungus and were , 

 held at 70 F for 24 hours to allow the fungi to germinate. The 

 fruit were then stored at 35 F for 7 days in either air or in air 

 plus 0.5 ppm ozone, and this was followed by a holding period of 

 2-4 days in air at 70 F to determine shelf-life. The use of ozone 

 had no effect on the per cent decay of the peaches at either 35 

 or 70 F. In another test, peaches were placed in 4-quart baskets 

 with a fruit infected with either brown rot or Rhizopus rot put in 

 the center of the basket. The baskets were held at 30 F for 7 days, 

 with and without 0.5 ppm ozone, to determine spread of the molds. 



