UC Davis updates its benchmark manual in postharvest technology

The Postharvest Research and Extension Center at the University of California, Davis has published the fourth edition of Postharvest Technology of Horticultural Crops, one of the most widely used technical references in postharvest science worldwide.

This updated manual reflects the evolution of the sector in key areas such as quality management, shelf life optimisation and loss reduction throughout the supply chain.

What this new edition offers

The publication compiles advances in areas such as respiration and ripening control, temperature and humidity management, transport and storage of fresh produce, as well as quality assessment and postharvest disease control.

These contents respond to a context in which storage efficiency and loss reduction have become strategic factors for growers, logistics operators and fresh produce companies.

In addition, this new edition introduces a significant change in format, moving from a single-volume book to a collection of ten specialised volumes. This structure allows for deeper coverage of specific areas, such as transport, storage or destination handling, and makes it easier for professionals to access more targeted content according to their needs.

New lines of work and content development

Alongside this publication, the centre has launched new initiatives aimed at updating and expanding its technical resources. These include funded projects for the development of new commodity factsheets, covering emerging crops such as jujube, as well as the revision and expansion of content for products of relevance both in California and globally.

These lines of work are carried out in collaboration with industry stakeholders and sector organisations, with the aim of generating applied, transferable knowledge across the postharvest chain.

The centre also maintains ongoing activity in training and knowledge transfer, with initiatives such as specialised workshops on fruit ripening and quality aimed at industry professionals.

Continuous update of postharvest resources

This new edition is part of a broader strategy to continuously update technical content, which also includes the revision of existing commodity factsheets and their translation into different languages to facilitate international access.