“Avocados ripen quickly,” explained Gal Wollach, vice president of international sales for R.O.P. “In ambient conditions, avocados ripen in five to seven days and are in a ready to eat state for three to four days before they start to deteriorate.” Cold storage stretches out the ripening process, and handlers can use 1MCP gas to suppress ethylene and further delay ripening. The risk with using the gas, however, is that it can interfere with normal ripening and in some cases completely prevent ripening after application.
“With our bags, we wanted to extend the pre-ripening conservation period in cold storage to four weeks and increase the ready to eat window to six days without sacrificing taste, texture or flavor. We also wanted to do this while minimizing the risk of 1MCP-related complications,” noted Wollach. Two bags from R.O.P. promise to do just that.
“The bulk bag extends the storage time without using 1MCP. This not only saves money, but it prevents mishaps of overdosing that result in product that doesn't ripen at all,” he said. “The other is a film bag that adds two to three days to the ready to eat stage; no one need buy an unripe product and wait or buy a ripe product and consume it in a rush.” Wollach is excited about the bags because they not only extend the shelf life of avocados, but they do so while preserving the fruit's best qualities.
“The products are already in progressive trials in Europe and are slated to launch there later this year,” noted Wollach. “They've been in commercial use in North America for several months, and the feedback, so far, has been great.”
