The Opelousas courier., 1904-04-23
COLD STORAGE OF FRUITS
INTERESTING FACTS FROM AN
AGRICULTURAL DEPART.
MENT REPORT.

dustry Since the Cold Storage sys
: tenn Was Introduced-Little De
tails Which Are Requisite for Sue
cess.
The effect of an invention upon an
industry is often noted. According to
an Agricultural department study just
made public the pear acreage of the
country has been more than doubled
In the last decade, due largely to the
Introduction and perfection of the re.
frigerator car and the cold storage
warehouse, supplemented by SONG
growth in the canning industry. Thu
facts should be of interest to all con
sumers Of winter fruit.
Pear storage has developed most
largely in the east. In New York ana
Jersey City from 10000 to 100000
bushels of summer pears, 10000 to
10000 bushels of later varieties, and
many cars Of California pears are
stored annually. In Boston, since 1895,
there have been stored each
year from 500 to $4,000 bush.
els of early pears, principall-
Bartlett, and from 1000 to lW
600 bushels of later varieties, sue Ela
Anjou, Bose-Duchess, Seckel and Glgz
don. In Buffalo 10000 bushe Gtl6Fe
sometimes stored in a single Jason,
and in Philadelphia from 1908 to 3d.
600 bushels. While there 1he no ac-
curate statistics availab'I and the
quantity luctuates FROM FAR to year,
it is probable that 30,' pDushels are
stored in a single year <oughout the
country. ~
Pears of all kinds Xed to be pick
ed, this investigat9 shows, before
they reach maturitqanl to be ripen-
ed in a cool temnAature, if the best
texture and favf1Hre to be develop
ed. They ouch o rapidly
after they areiY%ed than they do in
a similar teR ffature while hanging
varies witaThe maturity of the fruit
when picpN, and the conditions under
which i4Ias been grown. From the
experiments with the Bartlett and the
kieffeY pears it was found that the
BartlFt, if properly packed, kept in
primS condition in cold storage for
six weeks, provided it was stored
within IS hours after picking in a tenn
perature of 800 F.; but that if the
fruit did not reach the storage room
until four days after it was picked
there was a loss of 20 to 80 percent.
from softening and decay under *
actly similar conditions. The Kieffers
stored within 4S hours in a tempera-
ture Of $40 F. have kept in perfect
condition until late winter, although
there is little commercial demand for
them after the holidays.
The life of a fruit in cold storage
is prolonged by the use of a fruit
wrapper, and the advantage of the
wrapper is more marked as the season
progresses. If the fruit is to be stored
until late spring the wrapper keeps
1t flrmer and brighter. 1t prevents
the spread Of fungus spores from n
fruit to another, and thereby reduces
the amount Of decay. 1t checks the
accumulation of mould on the stem
and calyx in long-termed storage
fruits, and in light-colored fruits it
prevents bruising and the discolora-
ton that usually follows. Careful
comparisons have been made Of the
efficiency of tissue, parchment, I'M
printed newspaper, and waxed papers,
and but little practical difference has
been observed. A double wrapper has
prove more efficient for long keeping
han a single one, and a satisfactory
combination consists of IN absorbent,
imprinted newspaper neyt to the fruit,
with a o impervious paraffin wrap
per outside.
There is a general impression that
cold storage Injuries the delicate aro-
and cfaractistic fiavors of fruit.
1t is not true, the reports says, that
Ill cold storage fruits are poor in
On the contrary, if the stor-
lge house is properly managed the
most delicate aromas and f1avors of
many fruits are developed and re-
aimed for a long time. The quality
If the late fall and winter apples
in this way is equal to that of
he same varieties ripened out of stor-
lge, and the late pears usually surpass
n quality the same varieties ripened in
Common storage.
On the other hand, it is certain that
he quality of stored fruits may be
n%juriously affected by improper hand
or by the faulty management of
he storage rooms. Respiration goes
rapidly when the fruit is warm. :
{ placed in an improperly ventilated {
room, in which odors are aris-
1g from other products stored in the
anne compartment, or in the same j..
ycle of refrigeration, the. warm fruit i
lay absorb these gases and become !
ainted by them, while the same fruit, =
cool when it enters the storage .
Dom, will breathe much less active q
and there will be less danger of in :
Try to the quality, ven though the q
ir is not perfectly sweet. The at
losphere of the rooms in which citrus ;,
'uits or vegetables of various kinds -
lch as cabbage, onions and celery 4
re stored, is often charged with the :
Tors arising from these products, if "
lie ventilation is not thorough. .
There is a general impression that =
Did storage fruit deteriorates quick =
after removal from the warehouse. -
opinion is based On the expert, %
-" L asI