The best practice for all varieties during hot weather is to display 
only as many apples as can be sold in 2 or 3 days (11). Reserve supplies may 
beheld satisfactorily for short periods at 32° to 50° F., the lower temperature 
giving the best results (5, 24). Apples should be kept cool, dry, out of the 
sun, and provided with ventilation. Rotten apples should be removed from dis- 
lplays promptly (5, 31, 32). The principal factors of deterioration that may be 
retarded by refrigeration are softening of the flesh, internal breakdown, dis- 
coloration of bruises, and decay (24). Delicious apples soften more quickly 
than other varieties (11). Senn and Scott (30) noted that the borderline con- 
sumer acceptance of Richared Delicious apples was associated with a firmness 
rating of about 12 pounds. 
In research designed to represent 42 million households in the United 
States, 79 percent of those using fresh fruits said they preferred apples to 
other fruits. Among criteria for selecting their apples, the absence of bruis- 
ing was mentioned most frequently (7). To lessen handling of apples and to 
offer higher quality as a result of less bruising, ae retailers display apples 
in the original shipping containers (20, 29, 37). 3/ Hinkle (19) found no sig- 
nificant losses in sales between apples displayed in wholesale containers and 
those displayed otherwise. Some stores build displays with the molded pulpwood 
trays lifted directly from shipping containers to the display counter. This 
method discourages unnecessary handling of the apples by the clerks and cus- 
tomers, lessens labor, and insures rotation of the stock (1). 3/ 
Toothman and Anderson (36) designed equipment for retailers to assemble 
displays within backrooms instead of in consumer areas. The system requires 
display sections to be put in trays of uniform size. These trays are moved to 
the buying area and quickly lifted onto modified display counters whenever the 
produce display needs either replacement or rotation. Among the several advan- 
tages of the system is reduced bruising due to less handling, provided the trays 
are adequately padded and free of sharp edges. 
Oil wrappers are used to some extent on apples to control storage scald. 
This purpose was unknown to most retailers in one survey, 3/ but they invariably 
associated the presence of the wrappers with high quality apples. The retailers 
reported that customers handled wrapped apples less frequently and more care- 
fully than unwrapped apples. 4 
Apples sometimes absorb odors from adjacent produce, It is recommended 
that apples, either in storage or on display, are not placed near onions, 
cabbage, potatoes, or root vegetables (21, 25). 
Shelf Life 
The shelf life of apples roughly is inversely proportional to their 
respiration rates. The average respiration rate of apples at 70° F. is esti- 
mated to be about 3.2 times the rate at 40°; and at 40° the rate would be about 
47 percent greater than at 32° (35). Bisno (2) reported that if the shelf, Life 
of apples at 70° F. were taken as unity, apples would last twice as long at 50°, 
four times as long at 40°, nine times as long at 32°, and twelve times as long 
at 30° F. However, as earlier pointed out in this section, a few varieties are 
not tolerant to prolonged storage below 40° F. See section of this bulletin on 
Precooling and Temperature Effects During Storage; also references (24, 35, 40). 
3/ Seé also footnote 2, p. 129, 
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