WENATCHEE, Wash. – As the Northwest readies for a heat spell, Stemilt is keeping its focus on its innovative cold chain process for cherries, which starts in the field at harvest and runs continuously until cherries are shipped to their final destinations. Stemilt has the industry’s leading network of on-farm hydrocoolers in order to cool cherries soon after harvest, and additional technology now in place is ensuring that cherry freshness remains high on the post-packing side.
“Cherries are extremely perishable fruits, so much that for every hour they spend over 40 degrees, it equals a day of retail shelf life lost. Stemilt’s long-time strategy has been to put shelf life back in the retailer’s pocket by managing the industry’s best cold chain process,” said Stemilt marketing director Roger Pepperl.
Cold chain management has been a strategic part of Stemilt’s cherry program since its founding in 1964. Stemilt’s late founder and cherry pioneer Tom Mathison was among the first growers in Washington State to harvest cherries in the early morning hours, when temperatures were at their coolest, in order to maintain fruit firmness and quality.
Today, Stemilt has a large network of hydrocoolers, with a combined 15 mobile or on-farm units. Hydrocoolers drench 32 degree water over bins of cherries in order to pull the field heat out of the fruit. Stemilt relies heavily on mobile hydrocoolers, which can be transported to farming sites as they harvest, in order to hydrocool cherries within an hour of harvest. Stemilt places hydrocoolers under shade cloth or permanent shade structures for additional cooling capacity. Prior to and after hydrocooling, bins of cherries are covered with protective pads that have been soaked in cold water to keeping cooling of cherries constant.
“It’s critical that we reduce the temperature of cherries as soon after harvest as possible, and investing in on-farm hydrocooling has allowed us to do that. We get a head start on the cold chain process and deliver cherries to our packing facilities at a temperature that helps maximize fruit freshness, firmness, and flavors,” said Pepperl.
Stemilt’s packing lines are equipped with in-line hydrocoolers in order to continue the cold chain process that began in the field. After packing, boxes of cherries are palletized and sent to cold rooms to go through a final cool down process, called tunneling. Stemilt recently invested in six portable jet coolers that are used in the tunneling process. Each jet cooler has twin, 10 horsepower Baldor motors controlled by variable frequency drive and engineered fan blades.
The technology is the first-of-its kind to be used by tree fruit producers and has enhanced Stemilt’s ability to quickly and effectively get cherries to their ideal shipping temperature of 33 degrees.
“We’re constantly working to develop and tweak what we call our ‘recipe’ for cooling cherries in order to consistently deliver fresh, firm, and high-quality cherries to consumers worldwide. The introduction of jet coolers – which are specifically engineered for forced air cooling of produce – is helping us in our goal to deliver an even fresher product by considerably bringing down the time it takes us to cool cherries prior to shipping,” said Pepperl.
Stemilt’s emphasis on keeping cherries cool from the field to final shipment is centered on achieving a drop in fruit respiration in order to deliver the best and freshest product each and every day.
“Freshness goes hand-in-hand with the cold chain and is the primary factor in our ability to provide consumers with a great eating experience, and keep them coming back to the store for more cherries,” said Pepperl.
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About Stemilt
Stemilt Growers is a leading tree fruit growing, packing and shipping company based in Wenatchee, Washington. Owned and operated by the Mathison family, Stemilt is the leading shipper of sweet cherries and one of the nation’s largest suppliers of organic tree fruits. Stemilt has also demonstrated a commitment to sustainable agriculture and social responsibility since 1989, when founder Tom Mathison launched the company’s Responsible Choice program. For more information about Stemilt, visit www.stemilt.com and follow Stemilt on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, and You Tube.
Source: Stemilt Growers
