When berry producers from around the world are in Launceston for BerryQuest next month, they will meet the man who is breaking the mould in post-harvest horticultural sanitisation.
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Dr Sukvinder Pal Singh works in the New South Wales Primary Industries department developing supercharged air (or cold plasma) technology to sanitise berries and other horticultural products post harvest.
Cold plasma is created by supercharging air with an electric current, so produce can be treated safely with broad spectrum antimicrobial activity without leaving a residue, Dr Singh said.
“Berries are a delicate product. If you wash them in a packing house that can cause more damage and reduce their shelf life, so it would be ideal for berry growers to use a dry sanitation treatment, like cold plasma,” he said.
“Food sanitation is important because it can extend the shelf life of produce and kill any potential food-borne pathogens.”
Dr Singh is testing produce sanitation using a purpose-built facility at his laboratory near Gosford on the New South Wales Central Coast.
Plasma as a sanitation device is not new, but developing the technology for the food industry is.
“It has been used in the automobile, textile, plastics and medical equipment industries, but we are extending its application into the food industry,” Dr Singh said.
“We are exploring how best we can use this treatment in horticultural post harvest without doing any damage to the products.”
Research shows that cold plasma can kill or inactivate bacterial pathogens like salmonella, rot-causing moulds like botrytis and food-borne viral pathogens, such as noroviruses.
Cold plasma treatment is dry, does not leave a chemical residue, is environmentally friendly and fast.
“It can take seconds to a few minutes, depending on the target pathogen. It’s a good treatment if you want to do it post harvest on the packing line. Products can move through the plasma treatment and be sanitised,” he said.
While the food application of Dr Singh’s sanitising treatment is in its early stages, he thinks the technology will be available for commercial producers within the next three to four years.
Hort Innovation and the Primary Industries department are the foundation co-investors in this five-year project that aims to develop a new decontamination tool for the horticultural industry.
In future iterations, Dr Singh said cold plasma could be used in several applications in the horticultural sector, such as treating for insect disinfestation and sanitising surfaces.
BerryQuest International 2018 will be held between February 12 and 15 at Country Club Launceston, and is expected to be the largest berry event in Australia.