Post-harvest Losses Of Fruits Research Articles

Availability and Post-harvest losses of fruits and vegetable in Bihar: Economic Analysis

Bihar is the rich state with abundance natural resources and wide range of diversity in agriculture in comparison to other growing states of the country.Horticultural crops constitute a significant component of total agricultural production of the country and cover nearly 11.6 million ha area with a total production of over 91 million tonnes per year. Production of fruits and vegetables play an important role in generating employment, income and meeting household nutritional security. The combined annual production of fruits and vegetables in India is likely to cross 377 million tonnes (MT) mark by 2021 from the current level of over 227 MT. However, the projected production of fruits and vegetables would only cater to domestic demand leaving no scope for growth on export front due to the huge wastage would continue to rise simultaneously in absence of on-farm processing facilities. Post-harvest losses are very high in fruit, vegetables and root crops as they are much less hardy and are quickly perishable, and if care is not taken in their harvesting, handling and transport, they soon decay and become unfit for human consumption. The importance of post-harvest management for fruit and vegetable trade should not be ignored. New strategies need to be developing to promote adoption of post-harvest technology by the fruit and vegetable growers for good marketing. The creation of market infrastructure from export point of view such as creation of pre- cooling, cold storage, air cargo, packinghouse etc. may be taken up by the concerted efforts of the state government. There is also need to develop the efficient marketing systems with better storage facilities and less number of middlemen for the ultimate welfare of farmers. Thus, the policy makers should promote processing of fruits and vegetables for value addition and also explore export avenues.

Susceptibility of apples to bruising inside ventilated corrugated paperboard packages during simulated transport damage

The incidence of fruit postharvest losses and waste due to mechanical damage during handling is a major problem in the fresh produce industry Among the various range of force loading conditions experienced during handling and transportation, vibration is one of the key factors which may result in fruit bruise damage and the type of package used during handling of fruit could significantly affect the physical quality of the fruit. A simulated transport study was used to assess the susceptibility of apple fruit inside two ventilated corrugated paperboard (VCP) packages (MK4 and MK6) commonly used in fresh produce industry for packing apple fruit. An electro-dynamic shaker was used to excite vibrations at three frequencies (9, 12 and 15Hz) and 0.9g amplitude for four hours, which is usually adopted for truck transport simulation. Packaging transmissibility and incidence of bruise damage were measured at different frequencies. Results showed that both the incidence and severity of apple bruising were affected by package design and frequency. For both package designs at the three vibration frequencies investigated, packaging transmissibility ranged from 100 to 250%, with the highest transmissibility observed on the MK6 package with a lower length–to–height ratio at 12Hz compared to the MK4 package. Apple fruit inside the MK4 package with higher length–to–height ratio had less damage than fruit inside the MK6 package. Irrespective of the package design, apple fruit on the top layer were more susceptible to bruising and the range of the proportion of bruised apples was between 50 and 74% at all the three frequencies, which are rather extreme conditions that usually occur when loads of packed fruit damage during transport.

Comparative in vivo and in vitro study on Monilia fructicola causing brown rot of stone fruit in Brazil and California

Stone fruit production plays an important economical role in southern Brazil as well as in California, United States. In both countries, brown rot caused by Monilinia fructicola is the most important stone fruit disease, responsible for significant pre- and post-harvest fruit losses. The United States is among the main importers of stone fruit to Brazil. Imported fruit carrying the pathogen may introduce isolates with greater ability to infect stone fruit orchards in Brazil. In this study, 26 M. fructicola isolates from Brazil and California, recovered from commercial stone fruit orchards, were randomly selected and compared based on in vitro (optimum growth temperature, mycelial growth rate, germination, spore production and germ tube rate) and in vivo (sporulation, area under disease progress curve, incubation and latent period) studies on brown rot infection components. The isolates behaved similarly for most of the studied variables, except for germ tube length and sporulation on fruit, which were higher in isolates from California and Brazil, respectively. The negative correlation between these variables may be disadvantage for isolates from California to cause infections in the main peach cultivar grown in South Brazil. Significant differences in incubation and latent period and the area under disease progress curve were found among isolates from a same country. Such differences may be due to intraspecific diversity associated with the occurrence of the perfect stage in California, and by the broad sampling area from where isolates from Brazil were obtained. It is still difficult to determine the effect of isolates arising from imported California fruits in Brazilian stone fruit orchards. Further genetic variability studies and comparative epidemiology in the field may help to understant the real threat that foreign isolates represent.

Determinants of Post-harvest Losses of Fruits and Vegetables in Karnataka

The study revealed that majority of the respondents found in fruits. 150 sample was selected randomly. The step down regression analysis showed that the factors like production per ha, adverse weather conditions, inadequate storage facilities, inadequate transportation facilities and type of family exerted a significant and positive influence on post harvest losses. In case of vegetables, the fitted regression equation showed that the variation in the variables included in the regression equation explained nearly 80 per cent variation in post harvest losses atfarm level. In case of fruits, special mandies were seen highest in Kolar and Tumkur district. In case of vegetables, special mandies were seen highest in Kolar and Hassan districts.

Susceptibility to impact damage of apples inside ventilated corrugated paperboard packages: Effects of package design

The incidence of fruit postharvest losses and waste due to mechanical damage during handling is a major problem in the fresh produce industry. Ventilated corrugated paperboard (VCP) packages used extensively in the fruit industry are designed to minimize handling damage and to facilitate airflow around the produce to maintain the cold chain. During handling and transportation, both the package and contents experience a range of force loading conditions, including impact, compression and vibration which may result in bruise damage. The objectives of this study were to investigate the impact bruise damage susceptibility of apples packed inside two ventilated carton designs (one with fruit on tray layers and the other with fruit in retail polyethylene plastic bags). The spatial variation of bruise damage inside the packages and the incidence of physical damage of the packages were also investigated. Results showed that both the incidence and susceptibility to bruise damage of the apples were affected by package design and drop heights; with more than 50% higher incidence and 66% higher bruise susceptibility occurring on fruit packed in the bulk package design than on those packed in the layered package design. Irrespective of package design, both bruising incidence and susceptibility were highest at the bottom of the package, which increased significantly by about 50% when the package drop height increased from 30cm to 50cm.

Influence of zein and gelatin coatings on the postharvest quality and shelf life extension of mango (Mangifera indicaL.)

Introduction . Mango is the most economically important and nutritionally rich tropical fruit; it has high commercial value but a highly perishable nature; its sensitivity to postharvest diseases and physical injury limits its successful marketing. Postharvest losses in fruits are a serious problem because of rapid deterioration during handling, transport and storage. Edible films and coatings can be potentially used as an elective preservation technique to extend the shelf life of fruits. Materials and methods . The influence of zein and gelatin coatings on the physicochemical characteristics, softening and antioxidative enzyme activities of mango fruits stored at (32 ± 1) °C were evaluated at regular intervals of their storage period and compared with mango without coatings (control). Results and discussion . Zein and gelatin coatings seemed to have a beneficial impact on delaying the changes in weight loss, soluble solids, titratable acidity, pH, sugar content and total carotenoids. Zein and gelatin coatings resulted in the highest retention of ascorbic acid and phenolic content as compared with that of control. Zein and gelatin coatings delayed the ripening of mango fruit by suppressing the activity of softening enzymes such as polygalacturonase, pectin methyl esterase, cellulase and β-galactosidase. Zein 5% and gelatin 10% coatings maintained the highest induction of defense-related peroxidase enzymes, followed by gelatin 5% and zein 10% coatings. Conclusion . The application of zein 5% and gelatin 10% coatings could be used in delaying the ripening, maintaining the quality attributes and extending the shelf life of mango fruit during storage.

Control of fruit postharvest diseases: old issues and innovative approaches

Purpose of the review: This review focuses on the issues of fruit postharvest disease control; firstly the appearance of pathogen isolates resistant to common fungicides followed by stricter regulatory policies that impose a reduction in their use. Emphasis is given to the attempts to introduce effective biological control agents (BCAs) able to reduce fruit losses by an improvement in their formulation. Findings : At the beginning of the 1960s, treatments based on chemical fungicides as the main method of reducing postharvest fruit losses obtained satisfactory results. However, the fungicide option for managing postharvest decays is increasingly limited; in addition, the use of fungicides on fruit after harvest is regulated by different food protection agencies. The intense use of fungicides in the postharvest phase has contributed to the appearance of resistant isolates, widespread in packinghouses. Nowadays, fungicide resistance is frequently reported for the main fungal pathogens such as Penicillium , Monilinia , Botrytis, etc. Although the use of synthetic chemical fungicides remains a primary method of controlling postharvest diseases, the global trend appears to be shifting towards reduced use of fungicides, substituting them with alternative methods like biofungicides. However, the great effort made by researchers, documented by many peer-reviewed publications, has been only partially compensated by the appearance on the market of BCAs available for industrial application to control postharvest decays. Limitations : There are several reasons for the limited diffusion of biofungicides, some relate to an intrinsic ineffectiveness of BCAs such as their inconsistency, and the variability of the control under commercial conditions. Some are relate to their formulation which reduces the activity of antagonists with respect to the fresh cells, the high cost of the production, and the regulatory barriers to BCA registration in different countries that do not encourage their dissemination. Directions for further research : The formulation process represents an important step for maintaining a high and stable BCA efficacy. Dehydration of the product and maintenance in a dry environment is preferable to liquid formulations since antagonists can be handled using the normal distribution and storage channels. Unfortunately, not all microorganisms are able to survive drying conditions; they can lose viability during the drying process and storage. In order to avoid undesirable effects, cryoprotecting media have to be assessed during freeze-drying treatments in order to conserve antagonist viability. For example, in the case of Bacillus sp., its sporeforming ability could provide high resistance to extreme environmental conditions, making it a good candidate for developing stable and efficient products. In addition, the introduction of BCAs in wax or oil-based coatings can represent a useful strategy, above all for citrus fruit, papaya or mango that are treated by application of the coating after harvest.

Imazalil residue loading and green mould control on citrus fruit as affected by formulation, solution pH and exposure time in aqueous dip treatments

Green mould, caused by Penicillium digitatum, is responsible for major postharvest fruit losses on the South African fresh citrus export market. Some of these losses as well as fungicide resistance development can be attributed to sub-optimal imazalil (IMZ) residue loading on citrus fruit (<2μgg−1), which is commonly the case in South African packhouses. This will result in loss of control and sporulation inhibition on decayed fruit. IMZ formulation [IMZ sulphate and emulsifiable concentrate (EC)], solution pH (IMZ sulphate at 500μgmL−1 buffered with NaHCO3 or NaOH to pH 6 and 8) and exposure time (15–540s) were investigated in order to improve IMZ residue loading and the green mould control on Clementine mandarin, ‘Eureka’ lemon, and navel and Valencia orange fruit. Exposure time had no significant effect on residue loading in the unbuffered IMZ sulphate solution (pH 3). No differences were observed between the pH buffers used, but residue loading improved with increase in pH. The maximum residue limit (MRL) of 5.0μgg−1 was exceeded following dip treatment in the IMZ EC (after 75s exposure time), and IMZ sulphate at pH 8 using NaHCO3 (77s) or NaOH (89s) as buffer. The MRL was exceeded after 161s in IMZ sulphate solutions buffered at pH 6 with either NaHCO3 or NaOH. An IMZ residue-loading curve was prepared from which residue levels can be predicted for the control of IMZ-sensitive and IMZ-resistant isolates of P. digitatum. From this model the benchmark residue level for 95% control of an IMZ-sensitive isolate and of an IMZ-resistant isolate were predicted to be 0.81 and 2.64μgg−1, respectively. Residue loading can be improved by adjusting the pH level of an IMZ sulphate solution to 6 or by using the IMZ EC formulation, but exposure time should be restricted to 45s so as not to exceed the MRL. Conversely, sufficient exposure time of ≈90s in an unbuffered IMZ sulphate solution (pH 3) will result to improved green mould control, but with residue loading below 2μgg−1. The resistant isolate could not be controlled adequately with residue levels below the MRL, therewith indicating the practical relevance of IMZ resistance.

Assessment of post harvest losses of fruits at Tshakhuma fruit market in Limpopo Province, South Africa

The study on post-harvest losses of fruits was undertaken at Tshakhuma fruit market in Limpopo Province, South Africa. Fifty women hawkers were randomly selected and interviewed to obtain information on their socio-economic characteristics and post-harvest loss of fruits. Descriptive statistics was used to analyze the data collected. The results indicate that most of the women were in the middle age category (74%) with what can be described as basic education only. Of the five types of common fruits sold, bananas were the most prevalent followed by guavas, avocados, oranges and pawpaw. About 50% of the fruits were lost mainly due to over-ripening as a consequence of lack of proper storage facilities and appropriate technologies. Key words: Assessment, postharvest losses, fruits, banana.

Solar drying of fruits and windows of opportunities in Ethiopia

Fruits are essential food items as they play a vital role in the diet of humans. Fresh fruits are highly perishable and bulky commodities because they contain high moisture. Hence, their transportation to distant places is costly and their condition on arrival in the importing country may be less than satisfactory. Postharvest loss of fruits in Ethiopia is very high. This could be due to their perishable nature, poor postharvest handling and lack of cheap and appropriate postharvest technology. Hence, much effort is needed in the area of generating efficient, low-cost, indigenous technology that minimizes postharvest loss of fruits. One of these methods is to produce local value-added products through the development of micro- and small-scale agro-industries. Solar drying of fruits is one of such agro-industries that can enhance the shelf life of fruits. Therefore, the main objective of this paper is to review the potentials and possible methods and procedures of solar drying of fruits in Ethiopia with major emphasis on methods of drying and types of solar dryers; nutritive value of dried fruits, influence of drying on quality and utilization methods of dried products; basic procedures for solar drying, and problems and opportunities in the country to begin fruit solar drying as a business. This review demonstrated that Ethiopia has favourable conditions such as increased fruit production, favourable weather for solar drying, cheap labour, strong market linkage, air transport and favourable policy. These conditions favour the establishment of solar drying as a business in the country. Therefore, Ethiopia has to use these windows of opportunities to reduce postharvest loss of fruits and achieve the multiple benefits that can be obtained from solar drying through introduction and adoption of fruit solar drying technologies from abroad and developing appropriate technologies within the country. Key words: Ethiopia, fruits, solar dryers, solar drying.

Indigenous post-harvest handling and processing of traditional vegetables in Swaziland: a review.

The magnitude of post-harvest losses of fruits and vegetables in developing countries like Swaziland can reach up to 50% depending upon the commodity. The diet of rural Swazi folks is made up largely of a variety of seasonally available traditional vegetables whose nutritional and medicinal value is well appreciated. Several traditional vegetables are harvested, handled and processed using local indigenous knowledge (IK) at household level in Swaziland. Due to unaffordability of freezing and chemical processing technologies for preservation, drying has been the predominant method for traditional vegetable preservation, where the dried product is known as umfuso. Drying techniques which have been employed by rural folks from time immemorial are today being forgotten due to escalating rural-urban migration of younger people seeking employment in the industrial sector of Swaziland. Other techniques like solar drying and freezing if adopted may help increase chances of extending availability of traditional vegetables in Swaziland. The traditional vegetables include pigweed (imbuya), vegetable jute (ligusha), black jack (chuchuza), bitter gourd (inkhakha), cowpeas (tinhlumaya), pumpkins (ematsanga) and taro (emadhumbe). Research activities on indigenous post-harvest handling and processing of traditional vegetables are yet to gather momentum with the idea of incorporating use of modern methods and equipment. Local IK systems with regard to processing of traditional vegetables may be threatened by urbanization and hence the threat of losing oral tradition with time. Available information and future prospects pertaining to post-harvest handling, storage and processing of traditional vegetables has been reviewed here. Key words: Indigenous post-harvest handling, processing, traditional vegetables,umfuso, climate change, biodiversity.

Use of technology radiation as a method of reducing the microorganism and conservation postharvest of caja during storage

The caja fruit ( Spondias spp.) are among the species considered exotic presents excellent view of economic exploitation to the Northeast of Brazil. However, contamination by microorganisms is a major factor in postharvest losses of fruits and other cultivated in Brazilian territory. Use of ionizing radiation aiming to reduce the use of pesticide products in pest control and microorganisms phytopathological and maintaining the quality of agricultural products has been studied by several researchers of postharvest fruit. This technology meets the requirements of food safety imposed by the various organs of public health. In order to evaluate the action of ionizing radiation on agents phytopathological and the effects on the quality of postharvest of caja fruits when stored under temperature of shelf, the experiment was conducted with application of doses 1.0 and 2.0 kGy, dose zero as fruit control, and storage under temperature of 23°C for twelve days. Control fruit had higher contamination by microorganisms phytopathological throughout the storage period. Analysis of total soluble solids, total titratable acidity, hydrogen potential, soluble solids/titratable acidity ratio, ascorbic acid and color of the flesh have suffered minor variations between the different doses studied. Keywords : Conservation; caja fruit; gamma radiation; postharvest storage; microorganism spoilage.

Prokaryotic expression and purification of Camellia sinensis polyphenol oxidase

Polyphenol oxidase (PPO) causes the postharvest loss of fruits and vegetables but is also a key factor in the quality development of tea. However, there are no reports on engineered active plant PPO purified from prokaryotic cells. In this study the ppo gene of about 1800 bp from Camellia sinensis cv. Yihongzao was successfully cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli. The PPOs purified from both the soluble fraction and the inclusion bodies showed activity. In addition, 1.0 × 10(-7) mol L(-1) Cu(2+) and acidic conditions were found to be favourable for the engineered PPO catalysis of catechol oxidation. This paper represents the first report on C. sinensis ppo expression in E. coli and engineered active PPO purification. The results of the study provide a basis for the large-scale preparation and application of PPO.

KINETICS OF THE OSMOTIC DEHYDRATION OF GUAVA

Osmotic dehydration represents a technological alternative to reduce post-harvest losses of fruits. It is usually used as a pre treatment for other dehydration process. The purpose of this work was to evaluate the influence of the osmotic solution concentration and fruit to syrup ratio on kinetics of the osmotic dehydration of guava. Sucrose solutions of 45, 55 and 65 °Brix at 65°C was used, and 1:2 and 1:4 fruit to syrup ratios. The osmotic treatments were carried out under atmospheric pressure for five hours. Results showed that water loss and solid gain were higher in the beginning of the osmosis, being highest at 3.5 h. From then on there were no significant changes and water loss and solid gain became stable. Treatment at 65 °Brix and 1:2 ratio achieved highest water loss and less solid gain.

Air-Oven Drying of Pre-Treated Fruit Slices: A Promising Solution to Post-Harvest Losses

Reports have shown that over 25% of fruit are lost during their season and virtually out of the market during off season due to their high moisture content couple with poor preservation methods practiced in Nigeria. Smooth cayenne pineapple specie obtained from Ajanla Farms, Ibadan was used for the study. A two factor-factorial experimental design of 3-levels of 3 pre-treatment methods (sucrose, blanching and sulphiting) and 3-levels of drying conditions (80 C/8 h, 70 C/10 h and 50 C/16 h) resulting into 81 treatments o o o was used. The treatments were reduced to 18 by stratified sampling method from the results of the moisture and ascorbic acid content obtained from the pre-treated slices before drying. The slices were dried in a cabinet dryer; the moisture and ascorbic acid content of the dried slices were monitored during drying and after. All the samples exhibited combinations of falling and increase in drying with increasing in drying time. The dried slices were stored for 18 weeks, at which they were analyzed at 3 week intervals. The results obtained revealed that there were significant effects (p<0.05) of the pre-treatments on the ascorbic acid and moisture content of the dried slices. The 60%S/60 CB/2500ppm SO at 70 C/10 h had the least value of o o 2 moisture content of 8.75% and 25.16 mg/100 g of ascorbic acid. Furthermore, the results indicated that drying at 70 C/10 h is suitable for drying of pineapple slices than other drying conditions. During storage, o there was continuous reduction in moisture content during the early weeks of storage. However, after 9 weeks of storage the moisture content of the samples increased showing significant differences between the mean values of the samples at different weeks of storage. Though, the samples pretreated with SO2 showed a little variation over the storage period. Drying condition of 70 C/10 h and pre-treatment of 2500 ppm o SO /60% sucrose was found to have minimal reduction of quality and thus the most appropriate treatment 2 for air-oven drying of pineapple slices. The study therefore, recommends that production of pre-treated dried fruit slices could be used to reduce the enormous post-harvest losses of fruits.

Incidence of Post-Harvest Fungal Pathogens in Guava and Banana in Allahabad

A survey was conducted to study incidence of pathogens associated with post-harvest losses in fruits in produce from fruit markets of Allahabad. Rhizopus stolonifer (20.76%) was a major post-harvest pathogen isolated from the samples, followed by Pestalotia psidii (18.46%), Alternaria sp. (17.69%), Penicillium expansum (11.53%), Colletotrichum gloesporioides (10.76%), Aspergillus niger (9.23%), Tricothecium sp (8.46%), and Cladosporium sp. (4%) in Guava, and, Fusarium sp. (28.3%) Curvularia (23.39%), Colletotrichum musae (16.6%), Trichothecium sp (11.6), Penicillium (10.8%), Alternaria (5%) and Rhizopus (4%) in banana fruit samples.

Avaliação de linhas de beneficiamento e impactos de queda na qualidade de caqui "Rama Forte"

O manuseio inadequado e excessivo de frutas e de hortaliças causa alta incidência de danos físicos e, consequentemente, perdas pós-colheita. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a magnitude de impacto em linhas de beneficiamento e classificação para caqui "Rama Forte" e determinar, em laboratório, seus limites de impactos. Para a avaliação dos pontos críticos, foi utilizada uma esfera instrumentada de 76 mm de diâmetro (Techmark, Inc., Lansing, EUA), que registrou a magnitude dos impactos em sete equipamentos distintos de quatro unidades de beneficiamento. A determinação de danos físicos foi feita em testes laboratoriais, nos quais a queda dos frutos foi relacionada com a magnitude de impacto, incidência de danos físicos e perdas na qualidade do fruto. Nas linhas de beneficiamento, os valores de impactos encontrados variaram de 21 a 87 G nos pontos de transferência, e a maioria dos impactos registrados (acima de 94%) durante a passagem pela linha foram de valores de até 50 G. Alturas de queda a partir de 20 cm causaram aumento na perda de massa do caqui no sexto dia de armazenamento, em temperatura ambiente. As quedas de 20 e 30 cm causaram maior escurecimento da casca (menores valores de L), associada à redução da intensidade da cor (chroma). O impacto não causou efeito nas características químicas da polpa do fruto.

EFFECTS OF REFINING ON QUALITY ATTRIBUTES OF AFRICAN PEAR (DACRYODES EDULIS) OIL

ABSTRACT Oil extracted with hexane from dried African pear (Dacryodes edulis) mesocarp was degummed with 1 or 5% NaOH or H3PO4, and bleached with fuller's earth. Degumming and bleaching produced lighter-colored oils with lower specific gravity and free fatty acid content. However, degummed oils had higher peroxide value (PV) (16.50 mEq/kg for 1% H3PO4-degummed oils) than crude oil (8.00 mEq/kg). Bleaching drastically reduced the PV of degummed oils, with oil degummed with 1% NaOH having the lowest value after bleaching (1.50 mEq/kg). PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS The main thrust of the study is industrial utilization and value-added processing of African pear, a lesser-known African crop of considerable horticultural, nutritional and environmental significance, with a view to promoting its cultivation, reducing postharvest fruit losses and enhancing the income of small-scale farmers that cultivate the crop. Practical applications include establishment of small-scale industries for extracting and refining vegetable oil from oil-rich African pear fruits.

Ultrasound as pre-treatment for drying of pineapple

Dehydration of fruits is an alternative to reduce post-harvest loss of fruits and also a process to produce dried fruits, which can be directly consumed or become part of foodstuffs like cakes, pastries and many others. The effect of ultrasonic pre-treatment and ultrasound-assisted osmotic dehydration, before air-drying, on dehydration of pineapple ( Ananas comosus) was investigated. This study allowed estimating the water diffusivity in the air-drying process for pineapples submitted to ultrasound. Results showed that the water diffusivity increased after application of ultrasound and that the overall drying time was reduced by 8% (over 1 h of air-drying time). During the ultrasonic treatment in distilled water the pineapples lost sugar (23.2% in 30 min), so in this condition the ultrasonic pre-treatment can be an interesting process to produce dried fruits with low sugar content. Results showed that the water loss increased with increasing soluble solids content of the osmotic solution and that the ultrasound-assisted osmotic dehydration incorporated more sugar than conventional osmotic dehydration. The water effective diffusivity of the pineapples during the air-drying process was influenced by the pre-treatment, increasing the water effective diffusivity when ultrasound was applied.

Optimization of osmotic dehydration of tomatoes in a ternary system followed by air-drying

Osmotic dehydration and air drying technology represent a technique that can reduce post-harvest loss of fruits and vegetables. In this work the influence of osmotic solution composition (water/sugar/salt) and temperature on the osmotic dehydration of tomatoes ( Lycopersicum esculentum) were examined. Tomatoes with and without skin were studied. The process of osmotic dehydration followed by air-drying was studied and modeled, so it could be optimized aiming the reduction of total processing time. The results showed the advantage of two different processes for the tomatoes with skin and without skin. Tomatoes without skin are processed faster using air-drying without submitting the fruit to osmotic dehydration. Whereas, the tomatoes with skin dry faster when submitted to an osmotic solution consisting of 35% of sucrose and 5% of salt at 60 °C prior to air-drying.