harvesting Any experience with inexpensive post harvest storage of bonnet peppers

Hey Guys, 
 
I am a farmer of scotch bonnet peppers from Lagos, Nigeria.
 
I am expanding my farm this season after a rewarding last season but i'm planning for larger quantity of produce this year and i would appreciate any clues on delaying ripening and getting the best quality products out to my clients.
 
Regards,
 
Seyi (pronounced shaeyee)
 
shaeyi said:
I am a farmer of scotch bonnet peppers from Lagos, Nigeria.
 
I am expanding my farm this season after a rewarding last season but i'm planning for larger quantity of produce this year and i would appreciate any clues on delaying ripening and getting the best quality products out to my clients.
Welcome to the forum. Sorry, can't help with your problem, but (as a big Scotch Bonnet fan) I'd LOVE to see a few pics of a Scotch Bonnet farm!

:welcome:
 
Harvest and Post Harvest Operations The farmer should make all marketing arrangements with buyers before harvest in order to determine prices for the variety grown, delivery dates and schedules, kinds of packaging and where to deliver the pepper. The buyer should inform the farmer what kinds of pepper are required in terms of stage of maturity and colour.
 
Peppers sold directly to processors can be picked fully ripe (red or yellow) without the fruit stalk. Whereas, pepper for export is usually picked fully developed but still green or slightly turning. The petiole or fruit stalk is left intact on the fruit.
 
Flowering in hot pepper generally begins at about 7 weeks after transplanting, with fruit development a further 6 - 7 weeks later. The first flush of mature berries can be harvested about 3½ months after transplanting. Thereafter, regular pickings can be carried out over a period of 8 months or longer given good management of pests and diseases, good weather and high level general crop management. Weekly or fortnightly pickings are usually carried out. Harvesting should cease when yields and berry quality significantly drop.
 
Fruit production is not constant since the hot pepper plant goes through a series of flowering flushes about once every 3 weeks. Rainfall (soil moisture availability), disease and pest pressure, weed pressure and soil nutrient status are all important contributing factors to flowering and fruiting. Of course, the genetic potential of the variety plays a major role.
 
Fully developed and mature berries are picked and placed in approved, well-ventilated field containers which should not bruise the fruits. The harvested fruits should be taken from the field and placed in a cool shaded area to lose field heat immediately after harvest. The ideal cooling area is fitted with fans that force cool air through the peppers. Harvesting should be done in dry weather. Wet hot pepper berries rot a lot faster than dry ones.
 
Good management of harvest should also ensure the following:
• harvesters should wash hands with soap and water and wear sanitary gloves
•containers cleaned and washed with soap, water and bleach; crates preferably made of firm plastic or wood and with good ventilation.
• careful picking by workers to prevent the breaking of branches especially in fields with a high plant population density.
•separate picking and removal from the field of diseased, damaged, deformed or over-ripe berries.
 
Picking the hot pepper berry from the plant is achieved by grasping the fruit stalk (or petiole) at the point of the abscission layer where it is joined to the plant, between the thumb and forefinger and pulling upwards. The petiole will break off at its base when the berry is mature. The art of picking is mastered after some practice. This way of picking will prevent breakage of the petiole leaving them whole and undamaged as required by the export market.
 
Harvested fruits should be placed in firm, noncollapsible crates that can be stacked without placing pressure on the berries. Do not use collapsible containers such as onion bags. Fruits must be delivered to the pack-house as soon as possible after harvest.
 
juanitos said:
Harvest and Post Harvest Operations The farmer should make all marketing arrangements with buyers before harvest in order to determine prices for the variety grown, delivery dates and schedules, kinds of packaging and where to deliver the pepper. The buyer should inform the farmer what kinds of pepper are required in terms of stage of maturity and colour.
 
Peppers sold directly to processors can be picked fully ripe (red or yellow) without the fruit stalk. Whereas, pepper for export is usually picked fully developed but still green or slightly turning. The petiole or fruit stalk is left intact on the fruit.
 
Flowering in hot pepper generally begins at about 7 weeks after transplanting, with fruit development a further 6 - 7 weeks later. The first flush of mature berries can be harvested about 3½ months after transplanting. Thereafter, regular pickings can be carried out over a period of 8 months or longer given good management of pests and diseases, good weather and high level general crop management. Weekly or fortnightly pickings are usually carried out. Harvesting should cease when yields and berry quality significantly drop.
 
Fruit production is not constant since the hot pepper plant goes through a series of flowering flushes about once every 3 weeks. Rainfall (soil moisture availability), disease and pest pressure, weed pressure and soil nutrient status are all important contributing factors to flowering and fruiting. Of course, the genetic potential of the variety plays a major role.
 
Fully developed and mature berries are picked and placed in approved, well-ventilated field containers which should not bruise the fruits. The harvested fruits should be taken from the field and placed in a cool shaded area to lose field heat immediately after harvest. The ideal cooling area is fitted with fans that force cool air through the peppers. Harvesting should be done in dry weather. Wet hot pepper berries rot a lot faster than dry ones.
 
Good management of harvest should also ensure the following:
• harvesters should wash hands with soap and water and wear sanitary gloves
•containers cleaned and washed with soap, water and bleach; crates preferably made of firm plastic or wood and with good ventilation.
• careful picking by workers to prevent the breaking of branches especially in fields with a high plant population density.
•separate picking and removal from the field of diseased, damaged, deformed or over-ripe berries.
 
Picking the hot pepper berry from the plant is achieved by grasping the fruit stalk (or petiole) at the point of the abscission layer where it is joined to the plant, between the thumb and forefinger and pulling upwards. The petiole will break off at its base when the berry is mature. The art of picking is mastered after some practice. This way of picking will prevent breakage of the petiole leaving them whole and undamaged as required by the export market.
 
Harvested fruits should be placed in firm, noncollapsible crates that can be stacked without placing pressure on the berries. Do not use collapsible containers such as onion bags. Fruits must be delivered to the pack-house as soon as possible after harvest.
Great Summary. Thanks
 
However, I have heard of washing with ice, treating with some solution or the other  to keep the berries from rotting. Anybody heard of a strategy other than refrigerating.
 
Growing plants have only a limited capacity to maintain a constant internal temperature. The main means of cooling is by water loss via transpiration. During very hot conditions plants “cool down” by allowing water to evaporate from their leaves. The change in state from liquid to a gas absorbs heat energy and so the temperature near the leaves is less than the surrounding air. This means that on warm days plants use a lot of water, most of which is used for cooling.
 
Once fruit, vegetables or flowers are harvested they are no longer attached to their root system. Therefore any water that is lost, can now no longer be replaced by its roots. This is why rapid cooling after harvest is so important. If the temperature is lowered and the harvested products are put in refrigerated storage, water and quality loss can be reduced.
 
Fresh produce is alive, living and breathing. The general term for all the processes going on inside a living organism is called metabolism. Temperature has a big effect on the rate of metabolism of the product. When the temperature of the product rises, so too does the rate of metabolism. One of the main processes of metabolism is respiration which is the process of breaking down stored carbohydrate to produce energy. This means that when the temperature rises in products which do not have a lot of stored reserves, such as leafy vegetables and flowers, carbohydrate can become limiting. More simply, they run out of food and as a result the shelf life and quality is rapidly reduced by warm temperatures. Since the produce is separated from the rest of the plant these food reserves cannot be replaced. Temperature management for fresh produce is the key to quality. Lowering the temperature as quickly as possible after harvest will slow the rate of metabolism and therefore extend the product’s shelf life
 
tldr: cool your fruits down ASAP after harvest.
 
too cool temperatures can also damage fruit. you don't want to put them in an ice bath. that will damage them as well.
 
washing / rinsing gives bacteria and other stuff another vector to contaminate the harvest (the water)
Also if not dried completely peppers will spoil faster. Why you should use perforated packaging so there is air exchange / can dry if they have extra moisture.
it is generally advised to not wash produce until it is at the point of sale.
 
just pick them. then cool them off with forced air.  (spread on a table with fan blowing on them in the shade is better than nothing) (fancy fridge rooms are better but $$$). Indoor area with Air conditioning with a fan on them is great too. 6-15C storage temps.
 
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