before the first delivery is often useful. In other cases, 

 handling instructions may be attached to the flats. 



By using proper harvesting and storage tech- 

 niques, it is possible to maintain quality raspberries for 

 7 days after harvest, and strawberries for 2 weeks. 

 Blueberries can be maintained for 3 weeks after har- 

 vest. This amount of time is certainly enough for 

 growers to take advantage of distant markets through- 

 out North America. 



Supplemental References 



Hardenburg, R. E., A.E. Watada, and C.Y. Wang. The 

 Commercial Storage of Fruits, Vegetables, and Florist 

 and Nursery Stocks. USD A, Ag Handbook 66. (Write 

 to Superintendent of Documents, Government Print- 



ing Office, Washington, DC 20402). 



Bartsch, J. Walk-In Cooler Construction. Cornell Ag 

 Engineering Bulletin #453. (Cost $0.80, Distribution 

 Center, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14850). 



Bartsch, J. and G.D. Blanpied. Refrigerated and Con- 

 trolled Atmosphere Storage for Horticultural Crops. 

 NRAES-22 (Write to NRAES, Riley-Robb Hall, Cor- 

 nell University, Ithaca, NY 14853). 



Pritts, M.P., K.A. Worden, and J.A. Bartsch. Factors 

 Influencing Quality and Shelf Life of Eastern Straw- 

 berry Cultivars. Ag. Engineering Staff Report 87-1. 

 (Free. Write to Department of Pomology, Cornell 

 University, Ithaca, NY 14853). 



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Food for Thought 



Dominic A. Marini 



Cooperative Extension, University of Massachusetts 



R. Bruce Smith of Longview Farm, Westmoreland, 

 NH, was one of the speakers on "value added products" 

 during the marketing session at the 1989 New England 

 Small Fruit and Vegetable Growers Convention and 

 Trade Show. Mr. Smith operates an apple orchard and 

 gave a very frank and forthright talk on pies as a value 

 added product, including some of his figures on costs 

 and returns. 



His cost of production for the wholesale market is 

 $5 per bushel and the average selling price is $7 per 



bushel. Cost of production for pick-your-own or for his 

 roadside stand is $8 per bushel, while returns are $12 

 per bushel for pick-your-own and $18 per bushel on the 

 stand. 



He averages 10 pies per bushel. It costs $4 to 

 produce a pie which sells for $6.25 on the stand. He 

 produces 2000 pies per week for wholesale, mostly to 

 farm stands and to 2 supermarkets. Pies are sold either 

 baked or not baked and frozen. 



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12 



Fruit Notes, Spring, 1990 



