With the new pod stripping harvesters, no swathing is needed. Hydrocooling is the preferred method of precooling. Peas packed in baskets can be hydrocooled from 70 to 34 F in about 12 minutes when the water temperature is 32 F. Vacuum cooling also is possible, but the peas must be prewet to obtain cooling similar to that by hydrocooling. The ideal holding temperature at 32 F. Peas cannot be expected to keep in salable condition for more than 1 to 2 weeks even at 32 F unless packed in crushed ice. With ice, the storage period may be extended perhaps a week.
Peas keep better unshelled than shelled.