TFS-158 - 19 - JANUARY I966 



can be safely held at temperatures of 30 to 32 degrees. Even for these apples, 

 CA storage has been reported as beneficial in prolonging storage life when held 

 in such storage beyond a 60- to 90-da.y period. 



Essentials for CA storages include practically air-tight rooms and 

 special equipment to achieve and maintain satisfactorily the desired atmospheric 

 conditions. This is in addition to the requirements for adequate refrigeration 

 and air circulation for regular cold storage. Accordingly, construction and 

 operating costs are somewhat higher for CA storage than for regular cold storage. 

 Over time, the additional costs should be recovered through increased revenues 

 resulting from superior quality fruit. 



To maximize results from CA storage, several precautions should be ob- 

 served. The apples to be stored should be picked at the proper stage of maturity 

 consistent with the desired color. CA storage cannot correct over-maturity; it 

 can only aid in holding the firmness or condition of the fruit as it is at the 

 time of storage. Once picked, the apples should be quickly placed in the CA 

 rooms, the oxygen content lowered within the required 20 to 30 days, and then 

 the apples kept under optimum atmospheric control until the rooms are opened 

 for movement of the fruit. For these apples to be in the best possible condition 

 when they reach consumers, the fruit should be kept under refrigeration, insofar 

 as practicable, during transportation, handling, and display by retailers. 



Extent of CA Apple Storage 



The cornmerical application of controlled atmosphere in the storage of 

 apples in the United States began over a quarter century ago. Growth of this 

 kind of apple storage has been rapid over the past 5 "to 10 years, and further 

 gains are in prospect. The location and capacity of such storage was surveyed 

 for the first time by the U. S. Department of Agriculture in 196"3> covering 

 data for October 1, 1963* A like survey on CA storages for October 1, 196"5, 

 was started last fall and is still underway. Monthly data on apples in CA 

 storage were collected initially for the volume so stored at the end of January 

 1963. Since then, similar data have been collected monthly and published in 

 the Department's Cold Storage Report. 



The 1963 survey disclosed that 265 storage plants had CA rooms on 

 October 1, 196"3> with a capacity of more than 11 million bushels of apples. 

 This was 12 percent of the total usable space of the 1,612 apple houses in the 

 United States. Although substantial increases in CA storage capacity have been 

 made since October 1, 1963, capacity data from the 19&5 survey are not yet 

 available to show the gains. However, over 12 million bushels of apples were 

 reported in CA storage on November 30, 19^5 • Furthermore, not all available 

 CA space was filled. It is estimated that present capacity slightly exceeds 

 13 million bushels. 



Of the 265 plants having controlled atmosphere storage rooms on October 1, 

 1963* 159 plants (60 percent) were in the Eastern States. The other 106 plants 

 were nearly equally divided between the Central and Western States. The total 



