Ripening of tropical fruit including bananas

My name is Frits Popma. This year it is 30 years ago I started working with tropical fruit. In 1990 as quality inspector at Chiquita Banana Company in the Netherlands. In 1992 I worked for Chiquita in Honduras in pre-harvest of bananas. I left Chiquita as manager ripening and technical services. I was responsible for new ripening facilities, training ripeners, product improvement in the Benelux, France, Ireland UK, Denmark and Russia. In 2001 I started Popma Fruit Expertise, www.popmafruitexpertise.nl The reason ? A link between producers, ripeners and retail. Each had their own specific needs and wishes. In general there is no cooperation between all parties. Now, in 2020 I have worked in 55 countries and trained in almost 200 ripening facilities What is ripening?To make a fruit edible. Simple said, to make a fruit edible but the consumer wants to have a tasty, attractive fruit which, when necessary, to keep it fresh in the fruit bowl for a few days. Bananas have more than 350 components which can influence the taste and aroma. Which ones are the right ones? Secondly moisture is very important. A green banana contains 20 % starch, like potatoes, and 80 % water. A very important issue. What happens when a banana ripens ? The starch will be converted into sugars. A chemical process which produces a lot of heat. A single banana can produce 4 to 8 de degrees Celsius heat. Imaging when you don’t cool the bananas during ripening the bananas will cook. Besides the heat the bananas respire thus produce CO2, ethylene and moisture. But also the peel of the bananas change colour. From green to yellow and the pulp becomes softer. How can you control this process? The first question is when do I need these bananas ? Planning is so important. A yellow banana will not tell you is the banana ripe ? Ideal is a 6 day ripening cycle excluding day “zero”. Day zero means to bring all the banana temperatures at the same temperature. Different temperatures means uneven ripening, Ripening start when ethylene gas, a natural hormone produced by fruit, is applied into the banana ripening room. During the six day ripening cycle, the first day when the ripener gas the bananas the door remains closed. After 24 hours the banana ripening room is vented to release the ethylene and CO2 gas. CO2 in a high concentration will retard the ripening. Also the taste becomes different, the peel becomes dull and unattractive. Meanwhile manual or by software the temperature is decreased to reach an end temperature of 15,0 degrees at the end of the ripening cycle. The ripener has to measure temperatures of the bananas and compare this with the set points of the ripening program. This is a daily activity. The colour of the bananas is also an issue which is important, green bananas will never develop the right taste. The ideal colour in the shop is colour 4, more yellow then green. This guarantees a good taste, shelf life and a happy consumer. This is just a simple explanation of ripening. It is more complex. Keep in mind there is no university where you can learn ripening. Try and error but together we can improve it.Do not hesitate to contact me! Ripening coursesVDH Products and Frits Popma organise a two days Ripening Course in the Netherlands for users or potential users of the Proba 5 system. It includes a person who translate from English / Dutch into Spanish. The 1st. picture shows VDH Products stand in Fruit Logistica 2020. The company is specialist of ripening,control systems for the commercial and industrial refrigeration market and turnkey solutions. The author is in the stand and talking to visitors, Jacco Smid, Sales Manager VDH Products.The 2nd picture is by UC Davis, Fruit Produce Facts English, including the banana ripening chart. Contact dataFrits PopmaHertesprong 414874 JA Etten-Leur the NetherlandsCell: 0031651188669email: fwpopma@ziggo.nl