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Horticulture · Fruit quality · Quality

Fruit firmness

7.0 kg pressure

Flesh pressure measured by penetrometer, by line, against the minimum for storage and shipping. It is a fast, objective read on maturity at harvest and a strong predictor of how the fruit will travel and store.

Worked example · kg pressure by line · vs storage min
Min firmness 6.5 7.2 6.8 7.0 7.4 Line 1 Line 2 Avg Line 3
kg pressure by line · vs storage min
The benchmark

Firmness (flesh pressure) is a core maturity and storage index — fruit picked and stored above the minimum firmness for the variety holds condition through the supply chain, while soft fruit loses shelf life and grade.

APAL — Maturity Testing ↗
What it signals

Firmness that dips below the storage minimum signals fruit picked too ripe — at risk of bruising, breakdown and a downgrade before it reaches the shelf. Tracking it by line lets you stream fruit to the right market and storage regime.

Data required to calculate
Flesh pressure by linekgStarch and sugar maturityindexTonnes per linet

Silo pulls each of these from the sources the operation already uses, and keeps the figure current automatically.

How to improve it
01

Harvest each block within its maturity window, not all at once.

02

Cool fruit quickly and hold at the right temperature to retain firmness.

03

Stream softer fruit to nearer markets and firmer fruit to storage.

Questions & answers

What is fruit firmness?

Flesh pressure measured by penetrometer, by line, against the minimum for storage and shipping. It is a fast, objective read on maturity at harvest and a strong predictor of how the fruit will travel and store.

What data do you need to calculate fruit firmness?

You need: Flesh pressure by line (kg), Starch and sugar maturity (index), Tonnes per line (t). Silo pulls each of these from the sources the operation already uses and keeps the figure current automatically.

What is a good fruit firmness benchmark?

Firmness (flesh pressure) is a core maturity and storage index — fruit picked and stored above the minimum firmness for the variety holds condition through the supply chain, while soft fruit loses shelf life and grade.

How do you improve fruit firmness?

Harvest each block within its maturity window, not all at once. Cool fruit quickly and hold at the right temperature to retain firmness. Stream softer fruit to nearer markets and firmer fruit to storage.

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