Preparations in Full Swing for the International Conference on Fresh-Cut Produce in Apulia Next June

The Department of Agricultural Sciences, Food, Natural Resources, and Engineering of the University of Foggia will host FRESH-CUT 2024, the 5th International Conference on Fresh-Cut Produce, from June 3rd to 6th, 2024. The prestigious event is organized by Professors Maria Luisa Amodio and Giancarlo Colelli, in collaboration with the International Society for Horticultural Science. It is held every 4 years at a prestigious scientific institution; this edition in Foggia follows the 2019 edition held in China at the Shandong University of Agriculture, and the 2014 edition held in the United States at the University of California, Davis.

Over the past 20 years, researchers at the University of Foggia have been among the most active internationally in research and development programs, business training, and networking in the fresh-cut produce sector. They have been directly involved in coordinating national and international projects, organizing intensive courses, and other scientific events.

By the end of February, the phase of receiving scientific contributions from various international research groups was closed: over 140 abstracts were submitted. After a selection process carried out by a specially appointed scientific committee, just over 130 contributions have been accepted to be presented over the 4 days of the conference. In particular, there are 8 invited talks, 54 oral presentations organized into 9 sessions, and 75 poster presentations.

The session themes will include: physiological response to cutting and post-cutting behavior; the effects of pre-harvest factors on quality and post-cutting performance; innovation in modified atmosphere packaging and new packaging solutions, with two sessions; innovative solutions to extend product shelf-life; food safety and hygiene; green solutions and product innovation.

In addition to regular sessions, there are 2 special sessions: one dedicated to the results of the POFACS Project "Conservability, quality, and safety of horticultural products with a high service content," which involved close collaboration between public entities (CREA, the University of Foggia, and the University of Catania) and nine private partners involved in different sectors of the production chain; the second special session is dedicated to the COST Action "CIRCUL-A-BILITY – Re-thinking Packaging for Circular & Sustainable Food Supply Chains of the Future" funded by the European Commission. CIRCUL-A-BILITY aims to promote cooperation among European researchers with the common goal of innovating the food packaging sector through the development of sustainable solutions.

Additionally, an Industry Forum titled "The state of the fresh-cut sector: weaknesses, opportunities, and possible scenarios" is planned, conceived as a roundtable where representatives from the fresh-cut industry from different countries will answer questions about the sector's situation in their respective countries with reference to the market, marketing strategies, the role of R&D, and weaknesses; the Forum will be conducted by Dr. Mirko Aldinucci, coordinator of Fresh-Cut News.

Finally, the program includes a technical tour in the Battipaglia and Pontecagnano area, which, along with the Bergamo area, constitute the heart of Italian bagged salad production.

Over 100 registrations have been made for FRESH-CUT 2024, but the participation of at least 120 delegates from around 20 European and non-European countries is expected. The program, still being refined, can be consulted on the event's website.

For more information and registration, please contact the organizing secretariat (freshcut.2024@unifg.it) or visit the event's webpage.