Faculty of Agricultural Engineering, creates a method to keep broccoli for 18 days.

Students from Agricultural Engineering, the Faculty of Engineering, RMUTT, have studied and experimented in the preservation of broccoli in a modified atmosphere which can help to keep broccoli  for at least 18 days, discovered by Miss Waraporn Numkum and Miss Pornnipa Theepola.

The reason why they selected this vegetable is in terms of agricultural products and Thailand is a country of agriculture. Many times, agricultural products are harvested in their harvest season. Lucky or not, there are many inordinate volumes of products leading the problem of market swamp. Meanwhile, it will be imported as mass number after there has not been running out of the normal harvested season. Therefore, the way to reduce this problem is to preserve the crop as long as possible. Finally, it created this project.

Why the study is focusing on broccoli? The answer is because of its popular. During its harvest season, the broccoli swamps the market, meanwhile, there are broccoli shortage problem in the rest season causing the product importation in mass volumes from other country. So far, to reduce this problem, the long perseveration of the broccoli in the modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) will be another alternative which is also low cost of production and easy to do.

Normally, MAP is the method to reduce oxygen and increase the carbondioxide in order to decrease the rate of plant breath and biochemical change of broccoli. Mostly, MAP is used with low temperature and high relative humidity that they could help reduce the rate of losses. In this study, experimentation started with inserting 8% of carbondioxide, at 2 Degree Celsius of temperature and 80% of relative humidity.

According to the study, there are 40.2% of losses of weight in the normal atmosphere and 4.66% of losses of weight in the MAP method. There are only 4.1 days of the broccoli’s storage with the normal storage, but, 18 days with the MAP storage. Moreover, fresh vegetable weight is accounted for 61.42% in the normal atmosphere and 95% in MAP method.

The researcher said that “it is very proud that if their work can be further developed and bring use of it. For more information, please contact Mr. Warinthorn Yimyong, advisor of this project at 081-851-3382”

Translated by Mr. Suraporn Onputtha