Browsing by Author "Gage, Ewan"

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    Biological factors and production challenges drive significant UK fruit and vegetable loss
    (Wiley, 2024) Gage, Ewan; Terry, Leon A; Falagán, Natalia
    BACKGROUND Food loss and waste estimates are highly inconsistent as a result of methodological and systemic differences. Additionally, the absence of in‐depth evidence surrounding the biological drivers of food loss and waste precludes targeted mitigation action. To address this challenge, we undertook a metanalysis utilising a systematic literature review combined with industry stakeholder surveys to examine the incidence of food loss and waste in the UK fruit and vegetable supply chain between primary production and retail. RESULTS We estimated that 37% of fruit and vegetables, equivalent to 2.4 Mt of produce, is lost between production and sale. In the UK, primary production is the main stage responsible for these losses (58%), and is dominated by four crops (apple, onion, carrot and potato), which contribute 71% of total food loss and waste. Quality and supply/demand mismatch are the core drivers, combined with limited ability to control postharvest quality decline as a result of technical or economic barriers. CONCLUSIONS Innate biological mechanisms contribute to, and detract from, marketable quality generating food loss risks where these cannot be adequately modified or controlled. Through climate change effects, reduced pesticide availability, changing consumer behaviour and increased pressure to reduce resource/energy inputs during pre‐ and postharvest handling, food loss and waste risk is likely to increase in the short term unless targeted, coordinated action is taken to actively promote its mitigation. © 2024 The Author(s). Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.
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    Controlled atmosphere as cold chain support for extending postharvest life in cabbage
    (Elsevier, 2024-11-01) Gage, Ewan; Jain, Ritika; Terry, Leon A.; Falagán, Natalia
    Postharvest management of cabbage relies on high-intensity cooling to control postharvest physiology, minimising quality loss despite incurring significant energy and environmental costs. As an alternative, we hypothesised that controlled atmosphere (CA) could allow increased storage temperature by supporting physiological regulation, while maintaining quality and reducing energy demand. This study examined the effect CA (1.5 kPa CO2 and 6 kPa O2) at 5 or 10 °C on cabbage quality, with the aim of proposing a more sustainable and resilient supply chain. CA treatment was effective at reducing head respiration at higher temperature, with CA/10 °C treatment achieving lower respiration rates than Control/5 °C. Improved head colour retention and maintenance of stump quality were observed in cabbage under CA conditions. CA effects were seen also at a regulatory level; CA promoted an average of 25.4% reduction in abscisic acid accumulation potentially as part of a wider hypoxia stress response and was successful in decreasing expression of the senescence-coordinating transcription factor BoORE15. This finding was linked with a lower in downstream expression of pheophytinase and subtilisin protease. These results demonstrated that CA treatment fundamentally modified postharvest physiology in cabbage, which can be exploited to enable storage at warmer temperatures, contributing to supply chains with lower energy demand and its associated environmental benefits.
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    Data for "Postharvest stress manipulation in Tenderstem® broccoli – examining the potential for stress-adaptative responses to promote sustainable quality retention"
    (Cranfield University, 2025-01-09) Gage, Ewan; Falagán, Natalia; Terry, Leon
    Low-temperature postharvest management is utilised to reduce quality and nutritive losses in broccoli after harvest, although this increases postharvest energy demands and the environmental impacts of food supply chain. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and methyl jasmonate (MeJA) have been shown to reduce postharvest yellowing in broccoli by enhancing oxidative stress resistance and were examined as treatments for Tenderstem® broccoli florets for offsetting the effects of warmer storage temperatures. H2O2 elicitation was perceived on a regulatory level through activation of the jasmonate pathway but did not reduce postharvest yellowing. MeJA treatment was detrimental to quality, even at concentrations shown to be beneficial for conventional broccoli varieties. Carotenoid accumulation was shown to be a leading factor in Tenderstem® yellowing during early storage, while photopigment degradation contributed to late-stage quality loss. The physiological basis for floret yellowing in Tenderstem® was also shown to be due to carotenoid accumulation rather than chlorophyll loss. These results highlight the impact of genotypic and developmental effects on stress perception and response, which hinder optimisation of hormesis-based approaches for postharvest management.
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    Dataset for Controlled atmosphere as cold chain support for extending postharvest life in cabbage
    (Cranfield University, 2024-09-04) Gage, Ewan; Falagán, Natalia; Terry, Leon A
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    Reducing food loss and waste contributes to energy, economic and environmental sustainability
    (Elsevier, 2024-04-09) Gage, Ewan; Wang, Xinfang; Xu, Bing; Foster, Alan; Evans, Judith; Terry, Leon A.; Falagán, Natalia
    Food loss and waste (FLW) reduction presents a major opportunity for enhancing the sustainability and resilience of the food supply chain. However, the lack of evidence regarding the scale and origins of FLW hinder determination of its environmental impact and prioritisation of mitigation action. We herein conducted a study to quantify FLW in the UK horticulture supply chain, and estimate its environmental impact as assessed through CO2 equivalent (CO2e) emissions. Through a metanalysis of existing literature supplemented with stakeholder engagement, we estimated that 2.4 Mt of fresh produce FLW is generated annually between farm gate and retail for home-grown and imported produce, representing 36% of total supply. FLW was perceived as an inevitable economic risk rather than a sustainability issue, driven by economic factors (e.g. labour shortage, price protectionism). The lack of economic incentives for FLW recovery (e.g. alternative processing) further compound FLW. Our results reveal that FLW contributes 1.7 Mt CO2e annually, constituting 27.2% of the total emissions of the fresh produce supply chain. Resource-intensive production, prolonged storage and complex handling needs generates substantial energy demand and concordant environmental impacts. The current over-reliance on cold chain management should be re-examined to disentangle the FLW-energy-environment nexus, especially given that the effects of global warming on the horticulture supply chain has yet to be examined. To effectively mitigate FLW, a holistic approach is imperative, encompassing policy and consumer-level changes alongside development of novel postharvest management strategies.
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    Transparent, sprayable plastic films for luminescent down‐shifted‐assisted plant growth
    (Wiley, 2024) Müller, Rosa; Okokhere‐Edeghoghon, Bibian; Janowicz, Norbert J.; Bond, Andrew D.; Kociok‐Kohn, Gabriele; Cox, Lynne M. Roxbee; Garzon, Diana; Waine, Toby W.; Truckell, Ian G.; Gage, Ewan; Thompson, Andrew J.; Busko, Dmitry; Howard, Ian A.; Saavedra, Monica S.; Richards, Bryce S.; Breiner, Boris; Cameron, Petra; Wright, Dominic S.
    The world's steadily growing population and global heating due to climate change are a threat to food security. To meet this challenge, novel technologies are needed to increase crop production in a sustainable way. In this work, the use of luminescent down‐shifting (LDS) materials based on molecular Eu3+‐containing polyoxotitanates for plant growth enhancement is investigated. Using a systematic design strategy to optimize down‐shifting properties, conversion of the ultraviolet spectral range to the photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) is achieved with quantum yields as high as 68%. The prototype Eu3+‐compound can be incorporated into water‐based acrylic varnish that can be spray‐coated onto existing greenhouses. Comparing coated with uncoated greenhouses, basil plants produce 9% more leaf dry weight per plant, and a highly significant 10% increase in individual leaf dry weight. The coating reduces the amount of transmitted PAR by 8% but has advantageous effects on diffuse radiation and in reducing the internal mean temperature. Although there is some uncertainty as to the contribution of down‐shifting, with the bulk of the increase probably being due to higher diffused light and the reduction in maximum daily temperatures, this study establishes a model for the design of LDS paints for real‐world agricultural applications.