Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/717894
10 SEPTEMBER 2016 Good Fruit Grower www.goodfruit.com "Today's consumer doesn't want to work that hard," said Kathy Means, vice president of industry relations for the Produce Marketing Association based in Newark, Delaware. Asking shoppers to wait two weeks after purchase before eating? "It's the stupidest thing you've ever seen in your life," said Roger Pepperl, vice president of mar- keting for Stemilt Growers in Wenatchee, Washington, which conditions some of its pears. Conditioning is getting more prevalent. Nationwide, 47 retailers offer treated pears, up from 35 five years ago. But only about 35 percent to 40 of green d'Anjou pears receive ethylene treatments before they reach store shelves and even less of other varieties — 15 to 20 percent of Bartletts and only 5 percent of Bosc, said Moffitt, who hopes the food service industry adds red d'Anjous to the list next. D'Anjous, both red and green, are the easiest vari- ety to treat. After an ethylene treatment, their ripening slows again in cold storage. Bartletts, on the other hand, continue to ripen after conditioning and need to be sold within two weeks or so, but they are extremely firm right after harvest, so most Bartlett conditioning happens early in the season. Other varieties simply ripen better on their own or don't respond as well to ethylene. The Pear Bureau publishes a manual for conditioning of different varieties and contracts with a consultant to help both shippers and retailers start a condition pro- gram or fine-tune one already in place. Part of the reluctance is deciding whether the retailer or the shipper bears the responsibility for conditioning. Many shippers would rather retailers handle it, pre- ferring folks further down the line risk damaging ripe fruit by shipping it to their stores. Meanwhile, ethylene chambers with generators, vented boxes and forced air temperature control require a sizeable capital invest- ment and space. Of the 54 Northwest pear shippers, 32 have condi- tioning capability, according to Pear Bureau Northwest's roster. "You also need to have a significant enough volume to justify the expenditure," said Dan Kenoyer, general man- ager for Blue Star Growers in Cashmere, Washington. However, the service adds value. Blue Star custom con- ditions for many of its buyers and charges a premium for conditioned fruit, Kenoyer said. In the past, many packing companies like Blue Star relied on roaming ethylene trailers. The company built four conditioning rooms in 2005. The chambers, each with a bright yellow door and resembling a fire station bay, each can hold two tractor-trailer loads full of pears. Inside each chamber is an ethylene generator the size of an office printer and probes that track the internal tem- perature of the fruit. Photos by Ross CouRtney/Good FRuit GRoweR Blue Star Growers has four controlled atmosphere rooms, each large enough to condition two tractor-trailer loads at once. Josh Dailey, assistant shipping manager, closes the doors. "If people understand you have ripe pears or ripe fruit, you're going to distinguish yourself from your competition." — Kevin Moffitt