• Packhouse Vs Cold storage• Mechanism• Function • Process flow• Safety measures• Plant layout• Construction design
CONTENTS
PARTICULARS PACKHOUSE COLD STORAGE
Aim Increment in Market potentiality Extension of shelf life
Unit operations
Cleaning/washing/grading/ sorting/ waxing/storage/transportation
Cleaning/grading/sorting/ cooling/storage
Governing body
APEDA or private sector MoFPI or private sector
PACKHOUSE VS. COLDSTORE
Farm Produc
e
Pack House
Retail Stores
Consumers
•Cleaning•Grading•Washing•Drying •Inspecting•Packing & etc.
MECHANISM OF PACKHOUSE
Acts as an-– accumulation or collection point
– temporary holding area prior to distribution
– dispatch point of produce to different destinations
FUNCTION OF PACKHOUSE
RECEIVING• Maturity assessment• Removal of foreign matters• Trimming
WEIGHING (Digital)• 1kg scale -manual sizing (individual)• 50 or 100kg scale (incoming & outgoing produce)
Internal breakdown in ‘Carabao’ mango
PROCESS FLOW IN PACKHOUSE
SORTING
GRADINGStatic – inspection tableDynamic - moving belt
Color sorterSurface defects
PROCESS FLOW IN PACKHOUSE
Dynamic grader
WASHING • Water-chlorinated water-water
• Water-hot water/steam(50-65°C for 10-25s) with brush
PROCESS FLOW IN PACKHOUSE
REMOVING FIELD HEAT
• Contact icing• Hydro-cooling • Forced air cooling• Vacuum coolers(may be tunnel)• Evaporative cooling
A FIRST-IN, FIRST OUT(FIFO) SYSTEM
PROCESS FLOW IN PACKHOUSE
Dryer Blower
WAXING
• Food-grade waxes to reduce moisture loss• Applied by – foaming/ spray/ dipping and dripping
CONVEYING• Belt conveyor• Gravity conveyor (manual moving of conveyor)
Waxing of citrus by spraying
PROCESS FLOW IN PACKHOUSE
PACKAGING• For delicate produce
• Less delicate produce
PROCESS FLOW IN PACKHOUSE
Bagger for retail packing
PALLETIZING
Examples of container dimensions that are compatible with metric pallets (1 200 × 1 000 mm)
Chimney stacking pattern of cartons on a pallet and a central air space to allow heat to escape from the cartons
Pallet for unitized handling of containers
Insulated pallet
PROCESS FLOW IN PACKHOUSE
SAFETY MEASURES (MECHANICAL BRUISING)
Delivery of fruit from a roller conveyor to a belt conveyor
Rubber or plastic hoses used as bumpers
Blanket to de-accelerate the speed
Recommended design for a tank filled with liquid: (A) poor design may contain dead ends (B) design with improvements for hygiene (Rahman 2007)
SAFETY MEASURES
A B
MATERIAL OF CONSTRUCTION
• Wood or bamboo: tables, benches, bins, crates and pallets (dry product)
• SS 304 and SS 316: food contact surface
• Tungsten inert gas welding food contact joints. Metal inert gas welding non-food contact joints
CONSTRUCTION DESIGN
ROOF • Overhanging (atleast 1 m)- canvas or plastic• 3 m above the floor (height improve ventilation)• Galvanized iron sheet with insulation (PS or laminated plastic)• Translucent or corrugated roofing panel (light)• Screened roof vents
FLOORING • Concrete, smooth finished• Thick α load (reinforced with wire mesh & iron bar)• mostly 10 cm • heavy load-13-15cm• Slope 2-4%
CONSTRUCTION DESIGN
DOOR & DOORWAY• Width -1.5m(min)• Gap between door & jambs 3mm(max.)
WALLS • Concrete, smooth, non-absorbent, pest proof• Slope 45°• Floor-to-wall and wall-to-wall radius 5-6cm (min)
CEILING• Acoustic board• Distance between finished floor and ceiling- 2.4m (min)• Paint-white
CONSTRUCTION DESIGN
Door & doorway
WINDOWS• Screened (opening max 3mm)• Slope 45°• Height- 1m above floor
VENTILATION• Cellulosic evaporative cooling pads (reduces temperature)• Evaporative coolers
LIGHTING
An evaporative cooler that makes use of cellulosic pads (inset) as wetted media
CONSTRUCTION DESIGN
• http://mpstateagro.nic.in/Project%20Reports%20pdf/BANANA%20PACK%20HOUS
E.pdf
• http://www.haith.co.uk/
• https://www.magrabi-agriculture.com/packhous.htm
• Rahman, M.S. 2007. Hygienic design and sanitation. In M.S. Rahman, ed.
Handbook of food preservation (2nd ed.), pp. 957-968. Boca Raton, Florida, CRC
Press.
• Mitchell, F.G. 1992. Packages for horticultural crops. In A.A. Kader, ed. Postharvest
technology of horticultural crops, pp. 45-52. Davis, California, Univ. of California.
• Reyes, M.U. 1988. Design, concept and operation of ASEAN packing-house
equipment for fruits and vegetables. Postharvest Horticulture Training and
Research Center, University of the Philippines at Los Baños. 56 pp.
REFERENCES