The Chemical Control of Postharvest Diseases: Deciduous Fruits, Berries, Vegetables and Root/Tuber Crops

Abstract

In the preface of his thought-provoking book The Vanishing Harvest (235), R. K. Robinson offers this relevant insight, Over the last twenty to thirty years, agricultural production has increased dramatically, and yet interest in the protection of crops against postharvest losses has never gained the same momentum. Some wastage of crops or animal produce is, by the very nature of the harvesting processes, inevitable, but the avoidable losses 'between the farm gate and the consumer' give cause for real concern. International agencies that monitor world food resources have acknowl­ edged that one of the options most feasible for meeting future food needs is the reduction of postharvest losses (158). Fresh fruits, vegetables, roots, and tubers are quite perishable because their high moisture content makes them vulnerable to microbial decay as well as to physiological deterioration (123). While actual losses vary from season to season in all production areas, overall losses are highest in developing countries of the tropics where transportation and refrigeration facilities are likely to be minimal (64). Even in societies with access to the most advanced technologies for handling fresh produce, postharvest losses continue to be substantial (41, 123). A series of papers