In addition to protecting quality, postharvest cooling enhances marketing flexibility by making it possible to market fruits, vegetables, and flowers at more optimum times. The ability to cool and store commodities minimizes the need to market immediately after harvest. This method can be used with most commodities but is slow compared methods discussed below. Used refrigerated truck bodies make excellent small storage rooms. Water removes heat about 5 times faster than air, but is less energy efficient.
Mechanical refrigeration is the most efficient method of cooling water.
Ice in water will also provide a source of coolant. If hydrocooling water is recalculated, it should be chlorinated to minimize disease problems. Because of its residual effect ice methods work well with high respiration commodities such as sweet corn and broccoli. One pound of ice will cool about three pounds of a commodity from 85 to 40 o F. Refrigerated trucks are not designed to cool fresh commodities .