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OBJECTIVES OF TRIMMING
Facilitates handling – it also caters to the demands of the consumer.
Thorns in most varieties of roses make handling difficult. Their removal is important if
roses are to be sold to flower shops.
Stalk of the banana bunch – in the process of separating the hands, the detached stalk is
thrown away. Dehanding is best done with a dehanding knife curved to fit the crown as
practiced in the banana packinghouses in Davao, Philippines. In Thailand and Myanmar,
about 10cm of the stalk is retained when dehanding for the local markets. This is also
done in some areas in the Philippines when hands belonging to the same bunch are far
from each other.
Husk of baby corn – consumers expect that baby corn is already dehusked and desilked.
It also makes them more appealing.
Crown of pineapple – large pineapple fruits are detopped up to shoulder level with the
use of a knife.
Wrapper leaves of cabbage – while consumers in the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia and
Malaysia want their cabbage green, Singaporeans prefer cabbage almost white so all
distinctly green leaves are removed.
Reduce likelihood of diseases – if the crop is still marketable, damaged or rotten parts or those
likely to be sources of inoculum should be trimmed right away as in leafy vegetables.
For export or institutional buyers, remnants of floral parts of beans or of banana should be
removed since they usually harbor microorganisms.
Leafy parts of onion and garlic are trimmed up to 2-3cm above the neck. If green tops are not
removed, the bulbs are likely to rot since the tops are succulent. Topping up to the neck leaves
the bulbs open, and thereby accessible to microorganisms. If the bulbs are harvested with dried
tops, the latter need not be removed since the moisture content has reached a relatively low level
before harvest. In this case, topping may be done if consumers prefer so. The dried leaves are
needed if the bulbs are to be braided or bundled.
Minimize damage – pedicels of fruits can cause mechanical damage.
Stub of pineapple should be trimmed down smoothly to less than 6cm below the base of the fruit.
Mango fruits are positioned upside-down after trimming to allow the latex to drip.
The protruding stem of a lanzones bunch is best cut off.
In the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia and Malaysia, one to four wrapper leaves of cabbage are
left for protection depending on the number of times the produce is transferred, the distance of
the market and the transport conditions. The heads are trimmed of the wrapper leaves upon
reaching the market.
Minimize transpiration – the leaves of calamondin (calamansi), radish and carrots are often left
intact to convince customers of the freshness of the produce. However, it is important that these
commodities are sold immediately since the leaves provide greater surface area for transpiration.
Retards sprouting in onion – removal of roots after harvest retards sprouting.
PURPOSES OF CLEANING
To meet the demands of consumers – cleaning must remove dirt, latex of sapota ( chico ),
banana, mango; chemical residues, mealy bugs on soursop ( guyabano ), sugar apple
(atis), jackfruit, and lanzones; sooty mold on citrus, lanzones; and other extraneous
materials such as leaves and stones.
Delatexing – is called removal of latex
To render commodity more saleable – clean produce commands a better price than dirty
commodity.
To reduce microbial load – vegetable crops such as lettuce and bittergourd (ampalaya)
may have high microbial loads of coliforms and parasitic protozoa and helminths which
are worms (Acevedo 2001). Failure to sanitize may allow continued growth and
proliferation of microorganisms leading to decay or becoming a health hazard.
WATER ELIMINATION
Water elimination refers to the removal of surface moisture after washing or waxing or when
commodities are harvested wet. It is a more preferable term than drying since the latter connotes
dehydration. It is an important process and is necessary for maintaining the quality of the
produce:
Moisture on the surface of produce encourages the spread and growth of microorganisms,
hence it should be removed. Where commodities have been sprayed or dipped in
fungicide solution after harvest, the commodities need not be dried before packing as in
bananas, since the fungicide will not allow the growth of fungi.
Water elimination before fungicide or wax application removes excess surface water,
thereby preventing dilution of the fungicide solution. If no drying is done after washing,
sprayed fungicide is diluted, so a higher concentration of the fungicide is needed. Water
elimination before and after waxing has to be thorough.