Vegetable Wholesale Market Research Articles

Wholesale fruit and vegetable market in Milan: Turning food surpluses into environmental gains

Food redistribution is increasingly recognized as a key strategy for tackling food waste and improving food security. However, a comprehensive assessment of its environmental impacts remains a challenge. This study fills this gap by investigating the role of food redistribution in minimizing waste, reducing production pressures, and mitigating the environmental impacts of the agri-food chain. In particular, this research focuses on mapping the flow of recovered food within the Ortomercato system, Italy's largest fruit and vegetable wholesale market, by third sector associations.A comprehensive cradle-to-grave life cycle assessment was conducted to quantify the recovered fruit and vegetable products, assess their environmental impact, and estimate the associated environmental credits through the prevention of food waste.The findings indicate that the production phase has the largest environmental impact, accounting on average for 63% of the total impact. The study employs a net balance approach to demonstrate the success of food recovery efforts, which have saved over 136 tonnes of food from the market over a 49-day period and generated environmental credits equivalent to 169 tonnes of CO2 eq. per year. These results highlight the environmental impact of food redistribution and provide insights for operational optimization and the establishment of an environmental budget for the system. Furthermore, the potential for regulating these environmental credits and promoting the benefits of food redistribution through public channels is highlighted.While the research addresses the mapping of food flows and their environmental impacts, there is a significant gap in the assessment of the socio-economic impacts associated with food redistribution. Further research is needed to understand how this practice affects local communities, economies and social dynamics, and to contribute to a more comprehensive assessment of its effectiveness.

Narratives from the Margin: Sexual Harassment and Strategies of Resistance

In India, the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013 completed its ten years in April 2023. However, this is a crucial time to review its effects, provisions, and the awareness about the Act, and how much it has percolated at the grassroots level. Consequently, we must pay attention to the voices from the margin in order to comprehend the situation and need to bring these voices to the center to point out the lacuna and challenges of the Act as well as strengthen the discourse around the sexual harassment of women at the workplace. The study based on empirical findings, focuses on experiences of women workers at a wholesale vegetable market in Pune1 and follows an ethnographic approach. The article argues that mainstream discourse on sexual harassment does not acknowledge experiences of women from the bottom of the socio-economic margins and it is a caste-blind gender discourse. Caste shapes women’s experiences of sexual harassment at workplace differently and sometimes to mitigate the risk, women apply different strategies and build alternative mechanisms to combat sexual harassment at the workplace.

Hearts and minds in Hong Kong’s New Territories: Agriculture and vegetable marketing in a Cold War borderland,circa1946–1967

AbstractUsing declassified colonial and British records in Hong Kong and London, as well as memoirs of former leftists and newspapers, this article explores the strategies the Hong Kong colonial government employed in a propaganda campaign to garner political support of the rural population in the New Territories, a porous land frontier during the Cold War. It also analyses the varying political orientations of migrant farmers, who often had received economic benefits from both the colonial government and the leftist organizations. This article reveals that the colonial government established the Vegetable Marketing Organization (VMO), a state-owned enterprise, to first nationalize the vegetable wholesale market in the immediate post-war period, and subsequently used it to combat increasing political influence and anti-government activities of the communist-controlled Society of Plantations. Despite the improvement of the livelihood of immigrant farmers, the VMO Scheme failed to out-compete the Society economically, which was ultimately eliminated by draconian measures. Through studying the agrarian politics and economic contestations in Hong Kong’s rural area, this article provides a lens on how the Cold War was played out at a village level in East Asia.

Market response to typhoons: The role of information and expectations

AbstractDamages from tropical storms are enormous and predicted to increase with climate change. This study uses high‐frequency data to investigate typhoons' effects through information channels on Taiwan's wholesale vegetable market during the 1996–2014 period. We first identify effects on prices and quantities during storms' striking periods and further separate price effects into those due, respectively, to supply and demand shifts. The results show that for typhoons that make landfall, prices rise significantly during the striking period, and the decomposition results indicate that most of the price effects during periods with warnings but no landfall are due to demand shifts, which supports evidence of precautionary purchases by consumers. However, during the landfall period, the price effect is mainly driven by decreased supply. In addition, we find that typhoon effects differ between specific vegetables, and the magnitude of precautionary purchase is correlated with expected damage to those vegetables. Consumers also make more precautionary purchases when they face higher‐intensity typhoons or learn typhoons will make landfall within 24 h, and such prior information related to intensity or landfall urgency can also amplify early harvest effects by farmers.

Method validation, residue and risk assessment of 260 pesticides in some leafy vegetables using liquid chromatography coupled to tandem mass spectrometry

In the present study, QuEChERS method was optimized and validated for determination of 260 pesticides by liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS). The method had a suitable linearity (R2 ≥ 0.99). Limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) were ranged from 0.56 to 2.99 µg kg−1 and 1.88 to 9.99 µg kg−1 respectively. Average recoveries varied from 71.14% to 118.83%. Repeatability conditions and intra-laboratory reproducibility conditions of the method expressed as %RSD were found between 0.55% and 16.69% and 0.74% to 19.06%, respectively. The method was used to detect pesticide residue levels of leafy vegetables collected from the open markets, greenhouses and wholesale vegetable market. The pesticide residues were detected in 57.6% of the all samples. In five samples, pesticide residues were above Maximum Residue Levels (MRLs). The risk assessment study for detected pesticides in samples indicated that leafy vegetables consumption was safe for consumers.

Turning neem leaves anti-microbial substrate to methane-producing co-substrate for the generation of clean and affordable electricity through biogas: A case study

Environmental concerns necessitate forestation. Biomethanation of leaf litter of neem (LLN) was conducted to circumvent open burning. The effect of total tannin (TT) on biomethanation was investigated. We found the amount of TT (2.12%) and the total saponin content TSC (3.23%) as the anti-bacterial properties of LLN sufficient to inhibit bio-methanation. These anti-microbial characteristics were, thus, neutralized by co-digestion with fruit and vegetable wastes (FVW). We reinforced the bacteria by dilution with a liquid fraction of the digestate (LFD), resulting in a 97.6% increase in methane yield. The LFD was obtained from another digester using FVW as feedstock. The quality of biogas suffices production of clean and affordable energy. Maximum methane content, biogas, and methane yields of 64.2 %, 0.388 m3/kg VS, and 0.22 m3/kg VS were observed from the co-digestion of cattle dung (CD), LLN and FVW under mesophilic conditions at the volatile solids ratio of 1:1:1 and the overall total solids of the reactor of 9.36 %. The results closely matched that obtained from the co-digestion of FVW with food waste and with pig manure, proving LLN as a new co-substrate to FVW. The mean concentration of H2S (88.3 ppm) was below the prescribed value for clean and safe combustion. Experimental data were, hence employed to design and evaluate the performance of full-scale biogas plants to treat LLN and FVW being produced by the Hira Singh fruit and vegetable wholesale market in Delhi, India. It is the biggest of its kind in the country receiving 11,961 tons of fruits and vegetables while producing 150 tonnes of waste per day. With the government subsidies; a reduced (1.06 years) payback period can be achieved. The research presents the future scope for testing distinct toxic biomass.

Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Market Waste: Safety and Nutritional Characterisation for Their Potential Re-Use in Livestock Nutrition

Compared to other food categories, fruits and vegetables are the most wasted. This leads to the squandering of economic, social, and environmental resources. The reallocation of fruit and vegetable waste (FVW) into animal feed contributes to the sustainability of livestock production, reducing the impact of feed production for land use. In this study, the fruit and vegetable waste from the General Wholesale Market of Milan was considered. FVW samples were collected for one year and were analysed for safety parameters and nutritional, vitamin, and mineral composition. Data showed that dry matter (DM) was on average 10.82 ± 1.21% and neutral detergent fibre (NDF) was on average 22.43 ± 4.52% DM. The presence of soluble sugars (30.51 ± 7.61% DM, on average) was also detected. However, the high moisture content of this waste makes it easily perishable, with detrimental effects on quality, storage, and transportation. A strategy was therefore proposed to reduce the water content of FVW by pressing. Overall, the results highlighted the significant nutritional value of FVW from the wholesale market and the need to develop appropriate technologies to maintain the food chain line safe.

Hangar Utility Simulation as a Traffic Flow Density Scenario in Giwangan Market Yogyakarta

Giwangan Market as a fruit and vegetable wholesale market needs to be evaluated, organized and improved in the services. Currently, its development has undergone many changes. The hangar, which is the main block for loading and unloading fruits and vegetables, has shifted its function in several places. With the addition of semi-permanent buildings on the sides of hangars, the loading and unloading area are reduced and the entry and exit routes for vehicles are not functioning properly. 86% of vehicles with a tonnage of 2000 - 5000 kg that entered the Giwangan market were in the market for an average of 89.9 minutes. It is because the vehicle is not only loading and unloading but also selling in the market. So that other vehicles cannot load and unload. This study aims to measure the system performance which is estimated from the average actual travel time and the loading and unloading time of vehicles in the system. The alternative of rearranging hangar used is based on the development plan of the Giwangan Market Management Office. The simulation model has been verified and validated. The first rearrangement scenario is that all traders are moved to a new location (slaughterhouse). Second, the flow in and out of the hangar is one-way. Thus, the average vehicle in the system becomes 54.44 minutes and the hangar utility is 16.13% as an indicator that the hangar performance can be improved by increasing the number of vehicles capable of loading and unloading.

農産物の安全・安心に関わる中国緑色卸売市場の仕組みと関連生産流通分野の変容 : 福建省福州市亜峰野菜卸売市場を素材にして

農産物の安全・安心に関わる中国緑色卸売市場の仕組みと関連生産流通分野の変容 : 福建省福州市亜峰野菜卸売市場を素材にして

Brokers' views on the effectiveness of the wholesale market registration system: A case study of fresh fruit and vegetable wholesale market in İzmir province

Türkiye’de 11.03.2010 tarih ve 5957 sayılı kanun ile sebze ve meyve sektöründeki kayıt dışılığı önlemek amacıyla Hal Kayıt Sistemi kurulmuştur. Hal Kayıt Sistemi, Ticaret Bakanlığı’nın kontrolünde çalışan internet tabanlı bir kayıt merkezidir. Bu çalışmada Hal Kayıt Sisteminin kayıt dışılığı önlemek adına işlevsel olarak etkin çalışıp çalışmadığı sorusuna yanıt aranmıştır. Bu kapsamda, İzmir Büyükşehir Belediyesi Kaynaklar Yaş Sebze ve Meyve Toptancı Halindeki 30 komisyoncu ile anket yapılmıştır. Komisyoncuların Hal Kayıt Sisteminin kayıt dışılığı önlemedeki etkisi ve Hal Kayıt Sistemi hakkında gördükleri en önemli sorunlar çalışma kapsamında incelenen başlıca konulardır. Komisyoncuların %36.7’si Hal Kayıt Sisteminin kayıt dışılığı önlemede etkisinin olmadığını düşünürken, %30’u da bu konuda kararsız kaldıklarını belirtmişlerdir. Komisyoncuların görüşlerine göre Hal Kayıt Sisteminde görülen en önemli sorun, üretilen ürünlerin önemli bir kısmının sisteme kayıt olmadan pazara arz edilmesidir. Bunun da en önemli nedeni olarak Hal Kayıt Sistemi hakkında üreticilerin bilgi eksikliği gösterilmektedir. Tarımsal üreticiler, Hal Kayıt Sistemine bildirim yapanlar içinde önemli paya sahiptir. Bu nedenle sistemdeki kayıt dışılığı önlemek amacıyla özellikle de üreticilere yönelik bilgilendirme ve sistemin nasıl kullanılacağına ilişkin eğitim çalışmaları önem taşımaktadır. Hal Kayıt Sisteminin etkin çalışması için sistemde yer alan tüm aktörlerin denetlenmesini sağlayacak şekilde sistemin yeniden yapılandırılması gerekmektedir. Ayrıca, bazı teşvik mekanizmaları ile sisteme kayıt olmak cazip hale getirilmelidir.

Anaerobic co-digestion of mixed sewage sludge and fruits and vegetable wholesale market waste: Composition and seasonality effect

Fruit and vegetable wastes (FVW) generated in a wholesale market, and mixed sewage sludge (MSS) from a municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) are heterogeneous residues that may suffer important seasonal changes. We study the influence of those possible changes on the co-digestion of both residues. All the experiments were conducted under mesophilic conditions for samples corresponding to four different seasons, with a total feeding volume of 0.250 L d−1 and a constant hydraulic retention time (20 d), with six different FVW : MSS percentage volumetric relations (PVR): 0:100, 20:80, 40:60, 60:40, 80:20 and 100:0. The biogas and methane production rates increased with the volumetric percentage of FVW in the feed. For instance, as the PVR changed from 0:100 to 100:0 the increase of the biogas production was 10-fold in the summer season and 4-fold for the winter season. Regarding the biogas and methane specific production rates slight improvements can be observed with respect to the use of MSS alone, but remains almost constant for the PVRs between 40:60 and 100:0. This indicates that the main reason for the biogas production improvement is the larger concentration of VS in the FVW. The digester remained under stable conditions, even for the largest organic loading rate (OLR) studied (5.8 g L−1 d−1), regardless the variations between seasons. Therefore, management of both residues together at the facilities available at the WWTP would be a very good option.

Wholesalers perspectives on mango supply chain efficiency in India

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to identify the factors and most significant reasons leading to supply chain inefficiency with respect to high cost, high lead time and poor quality at wholesale stage of mango supply chain in India, and also to find out the measures which may be taken to improve supply chain efficiency. Design/methodology/approach The paper opted for an exploratory study using the quantitative and qualitative method of research. The study was conducted at Asia’s largest and world’s second largest fruits and vegetable wholesale market (Mandi) in Azadpur, Delhi. Factors have been identified using factor analysis and the measures to improve supply chain efficiency in fruits sector have been found out through semi-structured interviews with agri- and food-supply chain experts. Findings Based on the factor analysis, three factors were identified for high cost, namely, operational charges, labour and resources; four factors were identified for high lead time, namely, operational issues, labour, resources and infrastructure; and four factors were identified for poor quality, namely, operational issues, infrastructure, resources and poor ambience. It was also found that operational factor is the most significant factor leading to supply chain inefficiency. The study also highlighted the measures for improving supply chain efficiency based on the outcome of the interviews. Research limitations/implications This study is limited to the wholesale stage of fruit supply chain with the focus on Azadpur Mandi, Delhi, India, with specific reference to mango. Also, the measures have been identified for only the most significant reasons under each factor leading to supply chain inefficiency with respect to cost, time and quality. Originality/value There is a dearth of literature on improving the supply chain efficiency pertaining to the wholesale stage of fruits and vegetable sector in India. This paper tries to fulfil the gap and contributed to the literature on agriculture supply chain, which may be helpful for the researchers as well as the practitioners to improve food supply chain pertaining to developing countries.

Trading on Commission in Sri Lanka's Wholesale Scene

ABSTRACTSelling provides and arena in which notions of what could be considered ‘ethical’ come into correspondence. The putative meaning and order of the world outside the market seeps into the moment of sale, infused with ideas about religiosity, ethnicity, piety, masculinity and civic duty. This article analyses the moment of sale through the work of commission agents who sell to retailers on behalf of farmers in Sri Lanka's largest wholesale vegetable market. The commission agent is selling the livelihood of the farmers right in front of them and must mediate between buyer and seller in close proximity, maintaining effective social relations with both parties present. The article shows how existing social relations beyond the market are brought to bear on such a problematic moment of sale, but also, how the context of selling acts as a specific site of transmission and transposition. Through an ethnographic engagement with the act of selling, I demonstrate how traders stake out alternative forms of social interaction, reimagine their relationships, and take on ambiguous attitudes towards the ability to sell at all.

Importable of Machine Learning Technology in Domestic Vegetable Wholesale Market

Importable of Machine Learning Technology in Domestic Vegetable Wholesale Market

Study of Lapsi Fruits Enterprise Opportunities

Choerospondias axillaris is locally known as Lapsi in Nepal. The study of enterprises of Lapsi fruits production and its uses in market was conducted in September, 2015 in Bhaktapur district and Kalimati Fruits and Vegetable Wholesale Market, Kathmandu, Nepal. The major objectives were to study Lapsi fruits enterprises and its uses in different sectors. Lapsi fruits are sold in wholesale and retail price in Kalimati Fruits and Vegetable Wholesale Market. In Bhaktapur, Lalitpur and Kathmandu districts, the production areas covered were 198.0, 15.0 and 55.0 hectare, total productions were 105.0, 150.0 and 405.0 metric ton with productivity of 0.9, 10.0 and 7.4 metric ton per hectare respectively. The total Lapsi fruits production area, total production and productivity were 1503.0 hectare, 10488.0 metric ton and 7.4 metric ton per hectare in Nepal. The monthly maximum price of Lapsi fruits was NRs.30.00/kg in July/ August 2015. Similarly, the maximum price reached up to NRs.110.0 in February/March. The pulp of the Lapsi fruits is use preparing Lapsi powder, candy and it’s seed stone can be use for the preparation of activated carbon. Government policies should be clear about increase in production and productivity by the help of subsidy inputs. Farm get price should be reasonable. Lapsi candy processing and activated carbon production industries should be promoted where Lapsi fruits are cultivated. Hygienic candy and activated carbon should be exported to neighboring countries and overseas. It helps to earn foreign currency and develop economic of the country.Journal of the Institute of Engineering, 2017, 13(1): 145-152

The impacts of relocating a logistics facility on last food miles – The case of Melbourne’s fruit & vegetable wholesale market

The distribution activities of fresh produce by retail and wholesale trade industries generate a large volume of freight movements in urban areas. Recently, the local government in Melbourne, Australia have relocated the fruit & vegetable wholesale market from a centrally located suburb: West Melbourne to Epping, a suburban area on the fringe of Greater Melbourne. This paper investigates the impacts of the market relocation on the freight activities for fruit and vegetable retailers and wholesalers that source fresh produce directly from the wholesale market. This study utilised a telephone questionnaire with retailers to identify their delivery schemes and evaluate the impact of the market relocation on their freight trips. The analysis of the responses indicated that the market relocation has led to a significant increase (31%) in distance travelled (VKT) by retailers compared with the former site in West Melbourne. It is estimated that this additional distance contributes 830 tonnes of CO2-e per year for all the freight trips by the retailers. Furthermore, nineteen fruit & vegetable wholesalers participated in the semi-structured interviews to evaluate the impacts of the market relocation on their freight activities with respect to additional vehicle-km and explore any changes to their freight trips. It is estimated that wholesalers have to drive on average an additional 14.1 km to distribute the fresh produce to their customers due to the market relocation. Analysis for the wholesalers revealed that the market relocation complicated their ability to sustain their customer base and geographical coverage due to the additional vehicle-km.

Effect of Organic Dust Exposure on Pulmonary Functions in Workers of Vegetable Market with Special Reference to its Microbial Content.

Context:Wholesale vegetable market is a rich source of generation of organic dust as loads of fruits and vegetables are loaded and unloaded here daily. Thus, regular workers are exposed to this organic dust for a considerable period of time depending on their work schedule. This study was planned to determine the microbial status of organic dust and to explore its association with pulmonary functions in the workers of wholesale vegetable market in Rishikesh.Materials and Methods:It was a cross-sectional exploratory/observational study. Thirty-five apparently healthy adult males were selected from vegetable market having no history of any chronic illness. Smokers and alcoholic were excluded from the study. The same number of age- and sex-matched controls with the same exclusion criteria were recruited from workers not working in the vegetable market and also not exposed to any other kinds of organic dust. Microbial culture of air in the vegetable market was done. It was compared with the microbial status of air in the working place of controls. Pulmonary functions of all the workers were performed with the help of digital spirometer (Helios 401).Results:Bacterial and fungal concentration was found to be significantly higher in the air of vegetable market as compared to air in the workplace of controls (such as coagulase-negative staphylococci >25 colony-forming unit (CFU) at incubation temperature vs. 10–12 CFU at incubation temperature, significant growth of Mucor, Aspergillus niger, and Candida nonalbicans in vegetable market as compared to workplace of controls). Pulmonary function parameters (percentage forced expiratory volume in 1st s (FEV1), percentage predicted forced expiratory flow in mid-half of expiration, and FEV1) of workers exposed to organic dust in vegetable market were also significantly lower (P < 0.05).Conclusion:Exposure of organic dust is associated with compromised pulmonary functions and there is a need of formulation of safety guidelines.

Effect of ultrasonic pre-treatment on biogas yield and specific energy in anaerobic digestion of fruit and vegetable wholesale market wastes

Ultrasonic pre-treatment has been considered as an environmentally friendly process for enhancing the biodegradability of organic matter in anaerobic digestion. However the consumed energy during the pre-treatment is a matter of challenge especially where energy generation is the main purpose of a biogas plant. The aim of the present work was to study the efficiency of ultrasonic pre-treatment in enhancement of biogas production from fruits and vegetable wholesale market waste. Three sonication times (9, 18, 27 min) operating at 20 kHz and amplitude of 80 μm were used on the substrate. The highest methane yield was obtained at 18 min sonication (2380 kJ kg−1 total solids) while longer exposure to sonication led to lower methane yield. This amount of biogas was obtained in 12 d of batch time. The energy content of the biogas obtained from this reactor was two times of the input energy for sonication.

Signboards and the Naming of Small Businesses: Personhood and Dissimulation in a Sri Lankan Market Town

This paper concerns the naming of stalls in Sri Lanka’s largest wholesale vegetable market. Each optimistically selected business name, advertised on every carefully designed signboard, I argue, speaks to material and moral economies as well as nuanced perceptions of personhood. Signboards and the names they bear tell stories about the past and the future, success and shame, separation and loss, violence and dissimulation. In the context of the small business, I suggest selecting the name of the small business marks a separation intimately interwoven into the life courses of business families. The more sinister side of naming draws attention to the navigation of identity markers that have assumed new significance throughout the war in Sri Lanka, notably ethnicity and religion; as well as other less frequently documented markers of identity on the island that have existed relatively uninterrupted through times of conflict, namely caste.

Ant Colony Algorithm and Its Application in the Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Market in Vehicle Scheduling

Ant Colony Algorithm and Its Application in the Fruit and Vegetable Wholesale Market in Vehicle Scheduling