Pre Cooling Systems

FACULTY OF AGRICULTURAL AND FORESTRY
ENGINEERING
International on-line Course on

Postharvest & Fresh-cut Technologies
Pre-cooling Systems
Dr. María-Teresa Sánchez

Departament of Bromatology and Food Technology.
Faculty of Agricultural and Forestry Engineering.
University of Cordoba.
Campus Rabanales. SPAIN
Phone: +34 957 212576 E-mail: teresa.sanchez@uco.es
ENGINEERING
PRECOOLING SYSTEMS
María Teresa Sánchez

University of Cordoba (Spain)
Refrigeration for Preserving the
Quality and Enhancing the Safety of
Fruits and Vegetables
• Many experts think of purchasing perishable
commodities as actually the purchase of two
parts: the first part is the product itself and the
second part is the actual remaining commercial
shelf‐life. The last part can make the difference
between profit and no profit, between satisfied
retail consumer or upset consumer.
Why cool as soon as possible after harvest?
• Horticultural crops are living organisms after harvest and

must remain alive and healthy until they are processed or
consumed (Kader, 2002). The energy needed to stay alive
comes from food reserves in the produce through a process
called respiration. Heat energy is released during
respiration. However, the rate of release depends on the
type of produce, maturity, injuries and internal
temperature.
• Once harvested, all fresh gets into stress. This stress results
in respiration and transpiration. Both are mainly triggered
by temperature. By quick precooling fruits and vegetables
both respiration & transpiration can be reduced.
Why cool as soon as possible after harvest?
• Of these factors, the temperature of the produce has the

most influence on respiration. Rapid, uniform cooling
immediately after harvest to remove field heat helps to
slow respiration and provide a longer shelf‐life.
• As a rough guide, a one‐hour delay in cooling reduces a

product's shelf‐ life by one day. Although this is not true for
all crops, it applies to very highly perishable crops during
hot weather. Lowering the temperature also reduces the
rate of ethylene production and moisture loss, as well as the
spread of microorganisms and deterioration from injuries.
Precooling
• Crops grown in the field, greenhouses or growing rooms,
are subject to ambient temperature, accordingly containing
heat energy called field heat. The process of removing the
field heat is what is commonly called pre‐cooling. It is the
first operation in the cold chain.
• The cold chain consists of all the systems involved in
achieving and maintaining optimum product temperature
and for extending quality and shelf‐life during production,
storage, distribution, marketing up to the time of
consumption.
Precooling
• Pre‐cooling was first introduced by Powell and his co‐workers in
the US Department of Agriculture in 1904 (Ryall and Pentzer,
1982).
Definitions:
• The removal of field heat from freshly harvested produce in order to slow
down metabolism and reduce deterioration prior to transport or storage
(Janick, 1986).
• Immediate lowering of commodity field heat following harvest (Nowak and
Mynett, 1985).
• The quick reduction in temperature of the product (Rudnucki et al., 1991).
Precooling
• Precooling is the rapid removal of field heat from fruits
and vegetables immediately after harvesting, before they
are transported to market or placed in a cold store.
Likewise, precooling increases the shelf‐life of fresh
produce. Higher quality and longer shelf‐life means more
profits to produce growers.
• The temperature of the fruits and vegetables is reduced

quickly, in a few minutes or a few hours, so that the fruits
and vegetables remain very fresh.
Precooling
• Effective precooling requires that large amounts of heat are removed from
the horticultural product in a short time.
• Product has to be precooled to the carriage temperature before shipment

because refrigerated vehicles and shipping containers cannot circulate
sufficient cold air through tightly stacked loads to remove field heat.
• Proper product precooling reduces the rate of water loss and spoilage for
many perishables and helps maintain freshness and quality.
• For commercial precooling, it is recommended that 7/8 of the difference

between the pulp temperature and the cooling medium temperature be
removed prior to storage and transport.
Precooling
‐ 7/8 Temperature.
‐ 7/8 Cooling time: The time required for fruit to cool to
seven‐eights of the original difference in temperature
between the fruits and the cooling medium.
Example:
‐ Initial temperature of the product: 25ºC.
‐ Temperature of the cooling medium: 1ºC.
‐ 7/8 Cooling time: The time required for the
product to reach a temperature of 4ºC.
Main considerations in assessing
the need for precooling
– Product quality required at point of sale.

– Fluctuations in market conditions and demand.
– Growing, harvesting, distribution and storage
conditions and facilities.
– Growing area and market geography.
– Economic considerations: costs of cooling,
distribution and storage, market value of product.
Cold chain management begins in
the field
• Speed of cooling depends upon:
– Accessibility of produce to the refrigerating medium.

– Difference between the temperature of produce and
refrigerating medium.
– Velocity of refrigerating medium.
– Type of cooling medium.
Benefits of precooling
• Reduction of field heat.

• Reduction of respiration and ethylene‐
production rates.
• Minimising of spoilage.
• Reduction of water loss.
• Limiting the growth of micro‐organisms.
• Restriction of the enzyme activities.
Precooling systems
Precooling systems
• Selected by:
– Packing house size and operating procedures.

– Response of product to cooling method.
– Market demands.
– Product packaged in the field or in the packing
house.
– Length of the cooling season.
– Cost of dry versus water resistant cartoons.
– Economic constraints.
Bananas Peaches
1. Precooled fruits Mangos Apricots
Avocados Plums
Pineapples Strawberries
Blueberries
Blackberries
Fruits and
2. Non‐precooled
fruits
Apples Precooling
Citrus fruits
3. Optional precooling Pears
Grapes
Asparagus
Beet
1. Precooled vegetables Broccoli
Cauliflower
Tomato
Sweet corn
Greens
2. Non‐precooled
Potatoes
Pumpkins Vegetables and
vegetables Green tomatoes
Precooling
Cabbages
3. Optional precooling Brussel sprouts
Carrots
Artichokes
DESIGN
CALCULATION
Precooling methods
Air cooling
Sensible heat
Hydro cooling
Heat Transfer Latent heat Vacuum cooling
Hydro vacuum cooling

Sensible heat
+
Latent heat Ice cooling
Precooling methods
Room cooling
Forced air cooling
Precooling methods
Hydro‐cooling
Vacuum cooling
Ice cooling
Methods of precooling
Room cooling
Air cooling
Forced‐air cooling
Room cooling
• All volumes inside which a
temperature lower than the
ambient is maintained by
various means.
• Consists of a building, usually including a

group of cold chambers design to keep
product in well‐defined conditions of
temperature and relative humidity.
• Room cooling:
– Product is simply placed in a cooler, and over time,

the product temperature decreases nearly to the
cooler temperature. This process takes a long
time. The longer time it takes to cool it typically
shortens shelf‐life proportionately.
– It requires relatively low energy but is very slow.

Room cooling is suitable for produce varieties that
don’t decay quickly.
• Room cooling:
– Room cooling involves placing field temperature (warm)

containers of produce in a cold room. Cooling is achieved
by moving room air around the containers. Containers
are stacked individually so that cold air from the ceiling
blows over or around the produce to contact all surfaces
of the containers.
• Room cooling:
– Air‐cooling requires the supply of cold fresh air (RH 85‐

90%) to bulk or packaged products.
– Heat is transferred slowly from the mass of the product
(by convection) to the cold air being circulated around
the stacked containers.
– Room cooling is used for a wide range of commodities,
but the slow cooling rate is a major drawback, since
products are often loaded for shipment before they are
adequately cooled.
• Room cooling:
– Containers should be well vented so as much air as

possible can circulate through them. Spacing between
the containers and walls must be from 6 to 12 inches,
and between the boxes and ceiling, 18 to 24 inches.
Room cooling is not recommended for bulk bins because
they contain a much greater mass of produce than
smaller containers.
• Room cooling:
– Proper design of the cooling room and refrigeration

equipment is necessary for room cooling to work
efficiently. The refrigeration equipment must be capable
of cooling down fresh produce within 24 hours and of
maintaining the storage temperature of the produce.
Normally, much larger refrigeration equipment is
needed to cool down the produce than to maintain the
produce at a cool temperature.
Planning and construction of
a precooling store
a precooling store
a precooling store
• Specifications
– Products:
• Nature, quality.
• Frequency of loading, and unloading.
• Harvest calendar.
• Temperatures of the produce when received.
• Daily tonnages of the products.
• Nature and dimensions of packages.
• Outlook for increased production.
a precooling store
• Specifications
– Storage conditions:
• Temperature of storage.
• Differential controls.
• Duration of storage.
• Method of stacking.
• Produce which may be stored together.
a precooling store
• Specifications
– Storage:
• Existing building or in one to be built.
• Site plan and general plan.
• Number and characteristics of cold rooms.
• Characteristics of other equipments.
• Means of access.
• Miscellaneous services.
a precooling store
• Specifications
– Environment:
• Climate: External temperature.
• Relative humidity.
• Rainfall.
• Wind.
• Energy resources.
a precooling store
• Specifications
– Local availability of labour:
• Technical personnel for operation
and control.
• General labourers and general
maintenance.
CONDENSATION
EXPANSION
N
O
SI
ES
PR
M
CO
VAPORIZATION
Latent heat of vaporization Heat of

compression
Loss Refrigerating effect
Total heat rejected at condenser

Sensible heat
Latent heat rejected at condenser rejected at
condenser
Pressure-enthalpy diagram of a simple saturated cycle
Coefficient of performance (COP)

• Forced‐air cooling:
– Forced‐air cooling is similar to room cooling in

that produce is placed in a cold storage room.
Forced‐air cooling is designed to force cold air
through produce containers instead of around
them. Converting existing cooling facilities to
forced‐air cooling is practical and feasible. There
are variations of forced‐air cooling that fit specific
container needs.
– Forced‐air cooling is removing heat by creating a pressure

differential across the product and “drawing” cold air
through the product packaging. This method may also be
called Blast Cooling.
– Forced‐air cooling is adaptable to a wider range of

commodities than any other cooling method. It is
much faster than room cooling, because it causes
cold air to be in direct contact with warm product.
With proper design, fast uniform cooling can be
achieved through stacks of pallets bins or unitized
pallet loads of containers.
– Forced‐air cooling is 4 to 10 times faster than conventional

room cooling, but two to three times slower than hydro
cooling or vacuum cooling. Pulling, rather than blowing, air
through the containers is a better option so that cooled air
first flows around the product.
– Because the cooling air comes in direct contact with the
product being cooled, cooling is much faster than
conventional room cooling. The advantage is more rapid
product movement through the cooling plant; also, the size
of the plant is one‐fourth that of an equivalent cool room‐
type of plant.
– The key to forced‐air cooling is moving the cold air through the
container and its contents. Important factors in container
ventilation are:
• Location of container vents.
• Stacking of containers.
• Size of the vents.
– Container vents should be aligned whether the containers are
straight‐stacked or cross stacked, to maximize air flow through
the containers. If vents are too small or too few, air flow is
slowed. If there are too many, the container may collapse. In
this method, containers are stacked close together (tight).
– The cooling air is pulled or pushed through containers of

produce, providing greater air circulation around the
produce that results in faster cooling.
– The cold air from the room has to pass through the
holes in the packaging and around the produce inside. A
minimum of 5% sidewall venting is recommended.
– Optimum air velocity for forced‐air cooling is in the
range of 1.5‐2 m/s.
• Forced‐air cooling: Cold Wall
A permanent false wall or air plenum contains an exhaust fan

that draws air from the room and directs it over the cooling
surface. The wall is at the same end of the cold room as the
cooling surface. The wall is built with a damper system that
only opens when containers with openings are placed in front
of it. The fan pulls cold room air through the container and
contents, cooling the produce.
• Forced‐air cooling: Forced‐air Tunnel
The simplest design is achieved by building parallel stacks of

palletised cartons in a refrigerated cold room. The aisle top
and ends are covered with plastic or canvas, creating a
tunnel. A small fan is placed at one end. The exhaust fan
removes air from the enclosed space, so that the pressure
falls. Cold air then flows through the ventilation slots in
each carton.
Courtesy: Macs Coolers, 2019

• Forced‐air cooling: Serpentine Cooling
• A serpentine system is designed for bulk bin cooling. It is a

modification of the cold‐wall method. Bulk bins have vented
bottoms with or without side ventilation. Bins are stacked
several high and several deep with the fork lift openings
against the cold wall. Every other forklift opening—sealed
with canvas—in the stack matches a cold wall opening. The
alternate unsealed forklift opening allows cold air to
circulate through the produce. Cold room air is drawn
through the produce via the alternate unsealed openings in
the stack and the top of the bin.
http://www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/engineer/facts/14‐039.htm
• Forced‐air cooling
Advantages Disadvantages
Tunnel horizontal airflow systems Works with most container types if there Of all the FAC systems, requires the most
are enough side vents floor area per kg produce cooled
No limit to the total number of pairs of Of all the FAC systems, has the most sites
side‐slotted bins/pallets cooled at once where cooling air can short circuit
Cooling air travels only the width of one Space is required between pallets and
pallet (1‐1.2 m or 40‐48 in.) walls or adjacent tunnels
Column vertical airflow systems Requires a mid‐range floor area per kg of All sides of pallet not against the cooling
produce cooled wall must be covered to prevent air from
short‐circuiting
Suited to small farms with a wide variety of Only suitable for bottom‐slot reusable
produce to cool plastic containers (RPC)
Of all FAC systems, creates the least Of all FAC systems, cooling air travels the
number of sites where cooling air can furthest through produce ‐ up to about 2 m
short‐circuit (6.5 ft) ‐slowing cooling
Serpentine vertical/ horizontal airflow Of all FAC systems, requires the least floor Bins must have floor vents; any side vents
systems area per kg of produce cooled must be blocked
Cooling air travels only through bin depth Some cooling air will short‐circuit on top
(0.4‐0.6 m or 15‐24 in.) bins
Best for cooling bulk produce before Forklift openings restrict airflow and limit
packing how far bins can be stacked out from the
wall
Reversing the air‐flow direction equalizes
the temperature across the pallet.
Courtesy: Macs Coolers, 2019

Precooling systems are complete
with packaged refrigeration
systems and cooling units, ready
for field installation.
 Decrease time the produce remains at elevated

temperatures, reducing deterioration.
 Shorter cooling times and thus more efficient use of the
cooling facility.
 Cool produce effectively in a variety of unopened containers
without wetting it or subjecting it to excessive handling.
 Often more energy efficient than room cooling when large
volumes of produce must be cooled.
 An available room‐cooling facility with adequate cooling
capacity can be converted to forced‐air cooling with only a
relatively small investment in fans.
• Hydrocooling:
– Hydro‐cooling uses water as a coolant. Produce is either

submerged or drenched with ice water (0°C). Both
produce and containers must be water tolerant. The
produce must also tolerate low levels of chlorine (50‐200
parts per million chlorine), which is used as a
disinfectant in the water. Sanitation and daily cleaning
are essential to prevent storage diseases.
– Cool water is sprayed over the product, or the product is
immersed in cool water.
• Hydrocooling:
– Hydrocooling is a rapid cooling method that uses water

showering down over the produce as the cooling
medium.
– The method is based on the principle that a kg of water
can absorb more heat than a kg of air.
– The advantages of this method are speed, uniform
cooling and no weight loss by dehydration.
– The commodity as well its packaging materials must be
tolerant of wetting, chlorine (used to sanitise the hydro‐
cooling water) and must not be susceptible to water
beating damage.
• Hydrocooling:
– Without additives, water can’t be cooled below

32°F (0°C). So this method is ineffective for
cooling down to 31°F or below.
– This method also bring about safety concerns

such as pathogens that can easily be carried and
spread by the water.
• Hydrocooling:
Effective hydrocooling requires that cooling water
 Should move over the surface of the produce.

 Should contact as much of the product surface as
possible.
 Must be kept as cold as possible.
 Must be kept free of decay‐causing organisms.
• Hydrocooling:
 Flow through or continuous: the produce moves

on a conveyor belt through the shower.
 Batch type: stationary, stacked containers of
produce are showered with ice‐water.
 The basic equipment in both systems consists of a
water tank, pumps, a water discharge chamber,
and the refrigeration unit.
• Hydrocooling
Continuous‐flow shower‐type hydrocooler Batch shower‐type

hydrocooler
Continuous‐flow immersion hydrocooler Source: Thompson, 2008

• Hydrocooling
• Hydrocooling
Hydrocooler
• Hydro‐air‐cooling
• A frequent complaint about both conventional and
batch hydrocoolers is that they do not cool all
containers uniformly. The chilled water may not be
evenly distributed throughout the load resulting in
undercooling some parts. To overcome these
deficiencies, the batch hydrocoolers are fitted with a
high capacity fan to pull a fine mist of chilled water
through the product packages. The forced air has the
effect of making the cooling more consistent because
it pulls hydro air past the product more evenly than
would occur by gravity flow alone.
• Pallet loads of sweet corn or celery are effectively
cooled in these types of hydro air cooler. Sweet corn
in wire bound crates stacked five crates in height was
cooled from 32ºC to 1ºC in 1 h with overhead flow
from nozzle of 380 lpm in conjunction with air
circulation of 78 m3/min.
• Evaporative cooling:
– Evaporative cooling is an inexpensive and

effective method of lowering produce
temperature. It is most effective in areas where
humidity is low.
– Dry air is drawn through moist padding or a fine

mist of water. As water changes from liquid to
vapour, it absorbs heat from the air, thereby
lowering the air temperature. The air thus
cooled is drawn through the vents between the
product containers.
• Evaporative cooling:
– The incoming air should be less than 65 percent

relative humidity for effective evaporative
cooling.
– It will only reduce temperature, 10‐15°C. This

method would be suitable for warm‐season
crops requiring warmer storage temperatures
(7‐12°C), such as tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers
or eggplants.
• Vacuum cooling:
• Vacuum cooling:
In this method the produce is placed in a
strong, airtight, steel chamber. Air is
pumped out of the chamber to reduce
the atmospheric pressure, causing the
water in the produce to vaporize.
Cooling occurs because the heat energy
for vaporization comes from the
produce. The cooling rate is related to
the surface area/volume ratio of the
produce.
• Vacuum cooling:
Instead of using (forced) cold air or cold water to
cool down your produce, with vacuum you use
“evaporative energy” for cooling: By reducing
the pressure inside the vacuum room, you force
(a fraction of) the product’s own moisture to
evaporate. This evaporation costs energy, which
is taken from the produce in the form of a
temperature reduction. The vapor is drawn
through a refrigerant coil where the moisture is
condensed to allow the vacuum pressure to
continue to lower until the desired temperature
is reached.
• Vacuum cooling:
Produce is placed in a chamber and a
vacuum is applied. The vacuum reduces
the water vapor pressure in the produce,
which evaporates moisture and cools
the produce. The water loss is
objectionable for some produce.
• Vacuum cooling:
• Vacuum cooling:
Vacuum cooling works well with
vegetables that have a high surface‐to‐
mass ratio, such as head lettuce or
greens.
It is the most energy efficient because
only the produce is cooled.
For an economical and efficient facility,
vacuum cooling requires large quantities
of produce, and not all crops are
adequately precooled with this method.
• Vacuum cooling:
The more delicate your produce, the
faster you want to cool your produce.
Products can be cooled down effectively

in a vacuum cooler for vegetables, both
in big bins, and in palletized boxes. With
vacuum cooling, you can remove most
of the field heat in normally 30 – 45
minutes and do the final cooling in the
cold room.
For lettuce (iceberg), all kinds of leafy

vegetables, herbs, mushrooms and
compact vegetables such as broccoli,
celery and sweet corn.
• Vacuum cooling:
• Vacuum cooling:
• Vacuum cooling:
• Vacuum cooling:
Vacuum cooling of leafy vegetables and lettuce
Leafy vegetables like (iceberg) lettuce, spinach, baby leaf and herbs are easy to
cool very fast. Thanks to the high “surface to weight ratio”, vacuum cooling
can be very fast. If the chosen cooling capacity is high enough, the cooling
cycle can be shorter than 20 minutes.
Cooling right after harvesting

Cool down as soon as possible after harvesting: For iceberg lettuce it is proven
that – if you can start vacuum pre‐cooling within 1 hour after harvesting, you
will not get any brown coloring on the cutting surface!
Don't vacuum cool too much

Cooling down to 7/8 of the “target temperature” is more than enough! If
you want to store at 0,5 °C and harvest at 25 °C, it is more than enough if
you vacuum pre‐cool to around 4 °C. Lower pre‐cooling temperatures will
not give you any added advantages, and will only prolong your cooling
time disproportionally.
Add water during the process
Adding water during the cooling process (“Hydrovac”) can improve
the quality of your produce, shorten the cycle time and reduce the
weight loss.
• Wet vacuum cooling:
– HydroVacTM Cooling boasts the advantages of vacuum

cooling and hydrocooling. By spraying water on the
product just before the flash point of the vacuum
cycle, produce with low moisture content is cooled
without being dehydrated. HydroVac is used for
products like leaf lettuce, celery, and sweet corn.
Western Precooling Systems,
California, USA
Ice cooling:
• Ice cooling:
– The simplest and easiest and most economical way of preventing

spoilage of fruits and vegetables is by using package icing. The ice
can be finely crushed, flaked, or in a slurry with water. Packaging
used with icing must also be able to withstand wetting.
– Finely crushed ice placed in containers can effectively cool

products that are not harmed by contact with ice. Spinach,
collards, kale, Brussels sprouts, broccoli, radishes, carrots and
green onions are commonly packaged with ice. Cooling a product
from 35ºC to 2ºC requires melting ice equal to 38% of the
product’s mass. In addition to removing field heat, package ice
can keep the product cool during transit.
• Ice cooling:
– Pumping slush ice or liquid ice into the shipping container through
a hose and special nozzle that connect to the package is another
method used for cooling some products. Some systems can ice an
entire pallet at one time.
– Direct contact between the produce and the ice provides fast,
initial conduction cooling. However, as the ice melts, an air space
is created between the ice and the produce, and the conduction
cooling stops. Subsequent cooling is by radiation and convection,
both of which are slower processes than conduction.
• Ice cooling:
– The high ice requirement makes liquid icing an energy‐

inefficient and expensive cooling method.
– The space taken up by the ice decrease the amount of

space available for transporting the product.
– Water‐resistant packaging is necessary to prevent both

water damage to other products and safety hazards
during storage.
http://www.sunwell.com/systems.htm
Michigan State University, 2000

Source: Quik Cool, 2016
Source: Chandra Gopala Rao, 2015



After precooling?
– The produce are then transferred to the
intermediate storage area where storage
temperatures should be low as possible to
slow product metabolic processes and
discourage pathogen growth, but high enough
to avoid freezing or chill injury.
QUALITY
FLAVOUR
Many thanks
ENGINEERING
International on-line Course on

Postharvest & Fresh-cut Technologies
Pre-cooling Systems
Dr. María-Teresa Sánchez

Department of Bromathology and Food Technology
Faculty of Agricultural and Forestry Engineering
University of Cordoba
Campus Rabanales. SPAIN
Phone: +34 957 212576 E-mail: teresa.sanchez@uco.es

Pre Cooling Systems

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FACULTY OF AGRICULTURAL AND FORESTRY

International on-line Course on

Dr. María-Teresa Sánchez

María Teresa Sánchez

• Horticultural crops are living organisms after harvest and

• Of these factors, the temperature of the produce has the

• As a rough guide, a one‐hour delay in cooling reduces a

• The temperature of the fruits and vegetables is reduced

• Product has to be precooled to the carriage temperature before shipment

• For commercial precooling, it is recommended that 7/8 of the difference

– Product quality required at point of sale.

• Speed of cooling depends upon:

– Accessibility of produce to the refrigerating medium.

• Reduction of field heat.

– Packing house size and operating procedures.

Heat Transfer Latent heat Vacuum cooling

Hydro vacuum cooling

• Consists of a building, usually including a

– Product is simply placed in a cooler, and over time,

– It requires relatively low energy but is very slow.

– Room cooling involves placing field temperature (warm)

– Air‐cooling requires the supply of cold fresh air (RH 85‐

– Containers should be well vented so as much air as

– Proper design of the cooling room and refrigeration

Latent heat of vaporization Heat of

Total heat rejected at condenser

Pressure-enthalpy diagram of a simple saturated cycle

Coefficient of performance (COP)

– Forced‐air cooling is similar to room cooling in

– Forced‐air cooling is removing heat by creating a pressure

– Forced‐air cooling is adaptable to a wider range of

– Forced‐air cooling is 4 to 10 times faster than conventional

– The cooling air is pulled or pushed through containers of

A permanent false wall or air plenum contains an exhaust fan

The simplest design is achieved by building parallel stacks of

Courtesy: Macs Coolers, 2019

• A serpentine system is designed for bulk bin cooling. It is a

Courtesy: Macs Coolers, 2019

 Decrease time the produce remains at elevated

– Hydro‐cooling uses water as a coolant. Produce is either

– Hydrocooling is a rapid cooling method that uses water

– Without additives, water can’t be cooled below

– This method also bring about safety concerns

Effective hydrocooling requires that cooling water

 Should move over the surface of the produce.

 Flow through or continuous: the produce moves

Continuous‐flow shower‐type hydrocooler Batch shower‐type

Continuous‐flow immersion hydrocooler Source: Thompson, 2008

– Evaporative cooling is an inexpensive and

– Dry air is drawn through moist padding or a fine

– The incoming air should be less than 65 percent

– It will only reduce temperature, 10‐15°C. This

Products can be cooled down effectively

For lettuce (iceberg), all kinds of leafy

Cooling right after harvesting

Don't vacuum cool too much

– HydroVacTM Cooling boasts the advantages of vacuum

– The simplest and easiest and most economical way of preventing

– Finely crushed ice placed in containers can effectively cool

– The high ice requirement makes liquid icing an energy‐

– The space taken up by the ice decrease the amount of

– Water‐resistant packaging is necessary to prevent both

Michigan State University, 2000