Flesh Temperature
It is important that equipment is used correctly and maintained in good working order at all times so it can be used with confidence. Your fruit’s flesh temperature will provide a good indication of how your storage environment is performing. You should take regular measurements of your fruit’s temperature as this will inform you as to whether there are any cooling issues with your storage – the sooner you can identify and address such issues, the better. Your fruit will begin to warm the moment you remove it from its refrigerated environment. This change in temperature can affect fruit firmness in two ways.
Measuring Fruit Temperature
The warmer your fruit, the faster they will ripen. You will need to measure both fruit temperature and the temperature at which fruit are stored. Measure fruit temperature on a representative sample (Link to taking sample section) using a temperature probe.
Calibrate your temperature probe
Calibrating your temperature probe is important for gaining accurate measurements.
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Use ice from a pure water source
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Crush the ice into small pieces and mix with a little pure water in a container to form an ice slurry.
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Insert the temperature probe’s sensing needle into the ice slurry. Stir the slurry with the probe, keeping it moving through the middle of the ice slurry.
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Read the temperature after 1-2 minutes after the reading has stabilised.
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If necessary, either adjust probe itself or record the corrective factor on the assessment sheet and factor this into your records.