Ultra low Oxygen Cold Stores launched to reduce Wastage

• Developed at University of the West of England
• The sensor detects odorous organic compounds released due to bacterial soft rot.
• Useful for early detection of soft rot in commercial potato storage facilities.

A new way of identifying rotten potatoes by using a sensor while in storage could save an estimated $5.7 million. The sensor developed by a team of physicists at the University of West of England, in Bristol, is used to detect organic compounds in the air space around the potato tubers indicating an infection in the vegetables.

Bacterial soft rot, caused mainly by the bacterium, Erwinia carotovora, is a major problem in the bulk storage of many vegetable crops. Under favourable conditions, the bacteria can change infected potato into wet, rotten tissue, which quickly infects surrounding tubers and spreads the infection rapidly. Bacterial infection of this type is accompanied by an increase in the concentration of odorous organic compounds in the air space above the tubers and it is these gases that the sensors sniffs out to detect the rot.

The sensor-based on ceramic materials-showed a high sensitivity to the organic vapours and an added bonus is that they are also relatively inexpensive. Using their experimental results, the researchers used the best performance sensors to make a prototype detector which was able to detect one infected tuber in 100 kilograms ( approximately 900 potatoes). It is envisaged that this prototype system could be used for early detection of soft rot in commercial potato storage facilities.