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FILM OVERWRAPPING
OF APPLE TRAYS
INCREASES HANDLING EFFICIENCY

Marketing Research Report No. 1076

Agricultural Research Service

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Historic, archived document

Do not assume content reflects current
scientific knowledge, policies, or practices.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors gratefully acknowledge the assistance of Alpha Beta Acme
Markets, Inc., Los Angeles, Calif.; Diamond Fruit Growers, Inc., Hood River,
Oreg.; Kroger Food Stores, Houston, Tex.; Safeway Stores, Inc., Oakland,
Calif.; Shields Bag and Printing Company, Yakima, Wash.; Skookum, Inc., We-
natchee, Wash.; Snokist Growers, Yakima, Wash.; D. R. Stokes, agricultural
marketing research specialist, ARS, Beltsville, Md., who evaluated the ship-
ment of apples in experiment 2 on arrival at an eastern market; and Western
Foam Pak, Inc., Fresno, Calif.

Trade names and the names of commercial companies are used in this
publication solely to provide specific information. Mention of a trade
name or manufacturer does not constitute a guarantee or warranty of the
product by the U.S. Department of Agriculture nor an endorsement by
the Department over other products not mentioned.

CONTENTS

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Introductions 26 secs slice ein 2 Sale pee etn ah coal pe ee eae te ert
PEOCE CUBE Ia Seco Bie stett ole Sowa! ah eee ae wet as Slated Ange eer ag ea ee eee
Experiment 1—February and April 1974 .....................
Experiment 2—May 1974 x. << siisee's ds, a 2 shits saretechk Soh telete Sane
Experiment 3=January 1975) wns ies boc ate ele dale seta eee eens ep
Experiment 4—A pril and May 1975" .20..52 sts fete ce eee
Estimated costs of packaging materials—1976.................
Results) 2s adn ale Seas ae 4 Waweten e'sA e Sheree Oe nage a rea
PX PeramMene Li. 2'scc0, so bres see) ee teca ve Gate ste seco aieeenne oe reeeue eee een
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HXperiment 3) oi0s8 35 ace ho as 4 we eo asia StS naan mene
Experiment 4: ¢ 5 oo s Aieshers eoeiers Pag ates Gada cs ee eet eee
Conclusions and GiscusSion’ so. < 15.6 bison cs siers bree sl cuanate oo oan ee 1

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Washington, D.C. Issued June 1978

FILM OVERWRAPPING
OF APPLE TRAYS
INCREASES HANDLING EFFICIENCY

By J. B. FouNTAIN, R. M. Hovey, G. E. Yost, and R. T. HINSCH'

SUMMARY

Overwrapping standard apple trays with a
polyethylene shrink film (1) better protected the
apples from mechanical injury during retail dis-
play; (2) reduced weight loss; (3) improved cool-
ing (polyethylene film box liner was eliminated);
and (4) reduced labor time and skill require-
ments. Less labor was required both at the pack-
inghouse and at the retail store.

Labor requirements to pack a box of apples
were about 27 percent less at the packinghouse,
and labor requirements to build and rotate dis-
plays at retail were about 50 percent less for the
film-wrapped tray packs than for conventional
tray packs.

The weight loss from Golden Delicious apples
packed in the standard pack was about 3 percent,
compared with less than 1 percent for Goldens
packed in the film-wrapped trays.

The half-cooling time for Goldens in the film-
wrapped trays averaged about 18 hours less than
those in the standard pack with its film box liner.

At retail stores, 19 percent of the apples dis-
played in film-wrapped trays had bruises (one-
half inch or larger), compared with 29 percent of
those displayed in bulk with or without trays.
These differences emphasize further the value of
film-wrapped trays of apples over conventional
methods of bulk displaying apples.

INTRODUCTION

The 1974 U.S. marketing bill,* including costs
of processing, distributing, and transporting do-
mestic farm foods, totaled $92 billion, an increase
of 12 percent over 1973. The three largest com-

' FOUNTAIN and Hovey are agricultural economists, Yakima
Agricultural Research Laboratory, 3706 West Nob Hill Blvd.,
Yakima, Wash. 98902; YosT is an agricultural engineer,
Market Quality, Handling and Storage Research Laboratory,
1804 Springwater, Wenatchee, Wash. 98801; and HINSCH is a
marketing specialist, Market Quality and Transportation
Research, 2021 South Peach Avenue, Fresno, Calif. 93727.

7, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE, ECONOMIC RESEARCH

SERVICE. MARKETING AND TRANSPORTATION SITUATION.
MTS-198, 41 pp. 1975.

ponents of the food marketing bill are labor (46
percent), packaging (12 percent), and trans-
portation (7 percent).

Ceponis and Butterfield * found that mechan-
ical injuries (cuts and bruises) are the leading
type of loss in apples at retail. The Golden Deli-
cious apple, because of its soft flesh, is more
easily cut and bruised than most of the red apple
varieties.

> CEPONIS, M. J., and J. E. BUTTERFIELD, THE NATURE AND EX-
TENT OF RETAIL AND CONSUMER LOSSES IN APPLES, ORANGES, LET-
TUCE, PEACHES, STRAWBERRIES, AND POTATOES MARKETED IN
GREATER NEW YORK. U.S. Dept. Agr. Mkt. Res. Rpt. 966, 23 pp.
1973.

Comments about Golden Delicious apples from
the trade and Washington State Apple Commis-
sion fieldmen give some insight into this problem:

1. “When Goldens are displayed in retail
stores the change in temperature brings out the
bruises and discoloration and shrinkage becomes
a major problem.”

2. ‘As the apple marketing season progressed,
bruising developed in many lots, primarily in
those lots packed in the standard tray pack con-
tainer.”

3. “At times, boxes of apples were dumped
onto the display tables causing bruising, and
bruising also occurs due to customer sorting.”

4. “For the most part, bruising occurs at retail
level—the major source of trouble is in removing
the paper wraps. Fast handling of the apples
(most supermarkets operate with a one-man pro-
duce crew or perhaps one and one-half men) to
remove the paper wraps results in rough hand-
ling and bruising.”

To reduce retail losses, the Washington State
Apple Commission has for many years encour-
aged retailers to display apples in the shipping
tray in which they are packed and shipped.

The objective of this study was to adapt the
conventional standard apple tray to a retail
display unit by overwrapping it with film at the
packinghouse. Hopefully, this display unit would
(1) encourage retailers to display apples in the
shipping tray; (2) reduce labor requirements; (3)
reduce the level of mechanical injury; (4) main-
tain or improve apple quality; (5) allow the re-
tailer the option of displaying the apples in bulk
or as a consumer package; and (6) would not ad-
versely affect the internal quality, such as brown-
ing from carbon dioxide (CO,) injury.

Changes have occurred in the commercial tray
packing of Golden Delicious apples during the
course of this study. In addition to the standard
full-paper wrap (each apple individually hand
wrapped in a tissue paper), many packers and
shippers are using a tray pack without any paper
wrap around the apples. This “naked” tray pack
has cushion pads between each layer as well as a
pad on top and is referred to in this report as a
“pad pack.” Both packagings—the full wrap and
the naked with layer pads—commonly used tray
packs for Golden Delicious apples, are enclosed in
a polyethylene film box liner.

PROCEDURE

Our research involved four experiments: (1) A
small-scale, four-store retail experiment, using a
limited number of experimentally packed test
boxes; (2) a long-distance rail transit test; (3) a
10-store retail experiment using larger numbers
of test boxes that had been commercially packed;
and (4) a laboratory experiment to simulate the
environment during storage, transit, and retail
display.

Golden Delicious apples were used in all four
experiments. A 1.25-mil polyethylene film was
used to wrap individual layers of trays. This film
was subsequently removed from the top one or
two layers of trays when they were put on display
at retail.

Experiment 1—February and April 1974

This test included 84 apple boxes of sizes 88
and 100 apples. These test boxes were packaged

by hand, and no time study of labor requirements
was conducted. Retail studies were conducted in
four stores in the Los Angeles, Calif., area at two
different time periods—one week in February
(apple size 88) and one week in April (apple size
100). The test boxes of apples were shipped from
the Yakima Valley by truck on Saturday, arrived
at the terminal warehouse on Monday, and were
delivered to the four stores on Tuesday. The tests
were completed by the following Saturday. A
table display was arranged in each store and each
display was split between a typical bulk display
from the standard test boxes and the tray display
from the experimental film-wrapped tray pack
test boxes. Each half of the split display con-
tained the same number of apples for sale at the
same price (fig. 1). Bruising, cullage, and sales
records were kept for each display. Time studies
were made to determine the labor required to
build the displays.

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“APPLES ©

PN -5449

FIGURE 1.—Split display: Typical bulk display on the left; experimental film-wrapped trays with film removed
on top layer on the right.

Experiment 2—May 1974

Twelve test boxes of apples (size 113) were
packed by hand and shipped via rail from Yakima,
Wash., to Landover, Md. The six standard and six
experimental film-wrapped tray packs were
placed in the top, middle, and bottom layers of
the load. An ARS packaging research scientist
examined the 12 boxes of apples in Landover and
recorded the amount of bruising and severity of
bruising by type of pack.

Experiment 3—January 1975

This test involved a full truckload of Golden
and Red Delicious apples shipped from Hood
River, Oreg., to Houston, Tex. The Golden De-
licious apples (size 125) required to compare
film-wrapped trays and standard tray packs were
trucked to the Hood River packinghouse from a
Yakima, Wash., packinghouse. These apples were
repacked on a pilot packing line that included an
automatic film-overwrapping machine. Time stud-
ies of labor required to pack a box of apples
were conducted on this pilot packing line as well
as on the conventional packing lines. In all, 200
boxes of experimental film-wrapped trays and

200 standard tray packs of Goldens were packed
for this test.

Ten retail stores in the Houston, Tex., market
area provided table displays similar to those in
the Los Angeles tests (fig. 2). However, in this
market area the type of bulk display consisted of
naked apples in trays stacked several layers high.
As in the Los Angeles tests, bruising, cullage,
and sales records were kept by type of display.
Time studies were made to determine labor re-
quirements to build and change the two types of
displays during the sales period.

Experiment 4—April and May 1975

Because of the difficulty of keeping complete
control of the previous tests under commercial
conditions, we conducted a laboratory test to
more accurately evaluate the film-wrapped trays
with respect to (1) cooling, (2) temperatures dur-
ing transit and at retail, (3) ripening, and (4)
other internal measures of quality.

For this laboratory simulation test, 39 boxes of
comparable apples (size 125) were packed as fol-
lows: (1) 13 standard tray packs, each apple paper
wrapped, each pack in a polyethylene film box
liner; (2) 13 standard tray packs with macerated

PN-5450

FIGURE 2.—Bulk apple display in trays (left) and film-overwrapped display (right).

newsprint pads (pad packs) between each layer,
no paper wraps, and each pack in a polyethylene
film box liner; and (3) 13 experimental film-
wrapped tray packs, without film box liners, and
each apple naked.

The test consisted of three parts: (1) A cool-
down period in a coldroom set at 0° C (32°F); (2)a
simulated transit period in a coldroom set at 4° C
(40° F); and (3) a simulated retail period in a cold-
room set at about 21° C (70° F). In the latter, the
apples were placed on tables to simulate a retail
display. Two boxes of each of the three packs
were kept at a constant 0° C (32° F) to determine
the market quality of apples held under optimum
conditions.

Temperatures of apples located on each end of
the top, middle, and bottom layers of each box
were recorded from two boxes of each of the
types of tray packs during the simulated storage,
transit, and retail periods. Also, ambient air
temperatures around the boxes were recorded.
Pressure tests of representative apples from each
of the three types of packs were made periodical-
ly during the test period. The individual layers of
apple trays were weighed before and after the re-

tail portion of this test. Average CO, levels were
measured inside the film-wrapped trays. Soluble
solids and acidity, as malic acid equivalents, were
measured from representative samples of all
apples tested.

Estimated Costs of Packaging
Materials—1976

The estimated costs of packaging materials for
early 1976 are as follows: (1) Shipping container,
53 cents; (2) five shipping trays, 28 cents; (3)
polyethylene film box liner, 5 cents; (4) five non-
printed polyethylene shrink film wraps, 10 cents;
(5) 100 tissue paper wraps, 14 cents; and (6) one
macerated newsprint top pad, 4 cents. Four layer
pads for the pad pack cost about 13 cents for the
thin, macerated newsprint layer pads or about 9
cents for the polypropylene foam layer pads.

Thus, cost of packaging materials for a stand-
ard full-wrap tray pack would be about $1.04 per
box. These materials for a pad pack without any
paper wraps but with the addition of four layer
pads would cost about $1.03 or 99 cents per box,
depending on the type of pad used. For the ex-

perimental film-wrapped tray pack, the cost of
packaging materials is estimated at 95 cents per

5

box. This cost reflects the elimination of the
paper wraps and the film box liner.

RESULTS

Experiment 1]

There were more bruising and cullage (unsal-
able apples) and fewer sales of apples from the
bulk display (standard tray pack test boxes) than
from the film-wrapped trays of apples (table 1).

TABLE 1.—Bruising, cullage, and sales of Golden
Delicious apples in split displays at retail
stores in Los Angeles, Calif., during 2 test
periods—February and April 1974 '

Type of display, Bruising
test period, and (over /2 inch Cullage Sales
apple size in diameter) (unsalable)
Num ber of
Percent Percent of boxes
Film-wrapped
tray display:
February (size 88) .... 16.2 3.1 5.0
April (size 100)....... 5.0 1.9 2.6
Bulk display:
February (size 88) .... 30.0 20.1 2:5
April (size 100)....... 7.5 6.9 2.0

' Statistical analysis using a T-test showed the following: (1)
Bruising differences were not statistically significant; (2)
cullage differences between types of displays within test
periods were statistically significant at the 5-percent level; and
(3) sales differences between types of displays within test
periods were statistically significant at the 5-percent level.

With the displays side by side and with more
sorted-out bruised apples accumulating on top of
the bulk display, customers preferred to buy ap-
ples from the film-wrapped display. During the
first test period, about twice as many apples were
sold from the tray displays (5 boxes) than from
the bulk displays (2.5 boxes) in the four stores.
During the second test period, about 30 percent
more apples were sold from the tray displays (2.6
boxes) than from the bulk displays (2.0 boxes).
The higher levels of bruising in the bulk dis-
plays were due to the additional handling these
apples received when removed from the box to
build the display, when the display was built, and
when the apples were handled during customer
sorting. In contrast, the apples in the film-

wrapped trays were easy to remove from the box
a layer at a time and were easily built into
displays with no fear of dropping. Also, in this
test, customers for the most part did not disturb
the lower layers of displayed apples that were
kept wrapped in film and selected their fruit from
the upper layers, which had the film removed.
Thus, over a week’s period of display, apples on
the film-wrapped tray displays received less
handling than those in bulk displays.

Labor required to build the bulk-type display
was 6.5 man-minutes, and to build the film-
wrapped tray display 3.4 man-minutes were re-
quired—almost a 50-percent savings in labor.
This savings in labor for the film-wrapped tray
display is due to the ease and security of lifting
the film-wrapped trays out of the box and placing
them on the display table.

Experiment 2

Bruising of apples in the long-distance rail
transit test was as follows:

Percent
bruise
Test box imjury |
Standard’ tray pack (c.cvccds sae cereieieis oe ieperae eral 12.9
Film-wrapped tray pack 2... .000%.- 0605000024 13.0
Average levels ocjocis cigs as a viene a ar ssleie atseees 12.0

‘Total of bruises %4 to 1/2, % to 1, and over 1 inch in
diameter.

No significant difference was found in the de-
gree or level of bruising of the apples in the two
types of packs. Layer location of the boxes had no
affect on bruising in this test. The elimination of
individual paper wraps and the box liner had little
effect on the amount of bruising that occurred
during transit.

Experiment 3

Table 2 shows the reduced labor required to
pack a box of film-wrapped trays in contrast to
conventional packing methods. Depending on the
type of standard tray pack (full paper wrap or top

6

TABLE 2.—Estimated labor required to pack 1
box of Golden Delicious apples, 5-layer

1

sizes
Type of pack Man-minutes
Standard tray pack:

Typical apple packing line, full paper wrap’... 3.50
Typical apple packing line, top layer paper

WIAD Sacie-sfocesaieltishak iteaeguie A euseateaotiel o paeee 2.60
Automatic tray filling line, top layer paper

WIAD! 2 ccc idiete shaust se cusietesoicie © Ohepe ie ele seretelel ors 2.19

Experimental film-wrapped tray pack:
Automatic tray filling line, film-wrapped trays
(no;paper-wrap))> 2. 2sc0 =cs cece eee 1.60

‘Does not include labor for similar operations on the
different packing lines. Includes 15 percent allowance for per-
sonal time and fatigue.

> Time required to place empty box on stand, insert liner,
place and pack 5 layers of paper-wrapped apples, insert pads,
close liner, close box, stamp size and packer’s number on cover,
and place finished box on conveyor belt.

* Time required to place empty box on stand, insert liner,
place and pack 5 layers of apples with only top layer paper
wrapped, place packer’s number on cover, and place finished
box on conveyor belt.

* Time required to place empty trays on line, orient apples in
trays, and pack 5 layers of apples with only top layer paper
wrapped.

* Time required to place empty trays on line, orient apples in
trays, place film-wrapped trays of apples in box, and monitor
film wrap and heat machine.

layer only paper wrapped), as much as 2 man-
minutes could be saved per box of apples by pack-
ing the film-wrapped trays. In addition to reduc-
ing overall labor requirements, the laborers
needed to pack film-wrapped trays require less
skill than laborers needed to pack a standard tray
pack. However, to get maximum savings in labor,
the packinghouse operator would have to change
over to a presort and presizing operation.

Figures 3 and 4 show the arrangement of work-
ers and equipment for a typical packing line and
the pilot packing line used to wrap and pack the
film-wrapped trays. Figures 5 and 6 show the
trays of apples going into the automatic film-
wrapping machine and the one worker required
to place the wrapped trays into the box.

At the retail level there were further labor sav-
ings. Less labor was required to construct and
change apple displays of film-wrapped trays than
was required for standard bulk tray displays
(table 3).

In the Houston, Tex., market area, a typical
bulk display showed apples packed in apple ship-

ping trays without paper wraps. Thus, in this
area, the film-wrapped trays competed against
the standard type of tray display in the test
stores (fig. 2).

It took about 14 man-minutes to construct an
apple display of film-wrapped trays compared
with about 32 man-minutes to display the same
number of apples from the standard tray pack
boxes (table 3). The film-wrapped trays of apples
also required less labor when the displays were
rotated or changed (14 man-minutes) then when
the standard displays were changed (24 man-
minutes).

The chief reason for the reduction in labor was
the ease and, therefore, the speed with which the
film-wrapped trays could be removed from the
box and placed on the table without spilling the
apples. However, the produce clerk spent more
time policing the film-wrapped tray displays to
keep a full appearance than he did with the
standard tray displays.

As in experiments 1 and 2, apple bruising on
retail display was less for those apples in the
film-wrapped trays than for those from the
standard tray pack (table 4). When the apples
were examined just after transit, little difference
in bruising was found between the standard and
experimental packs. On display, the significant
difference was at the 5-percent level (1/2 to %4-
inch bruises) and 10 percent level (over %4-inch
bruises). Even though the difference was greater
in the second inspection period, the treatment by
time interaction was not significant.

Experiment 4

The half-cooling times of the apples in the tray
packs tested are shown in table 5. The apples in
the film-wrapped trays showed a significantly
shorter half-cooling time (96.5 hours) than those
in the standard tray packs (114.5 hours). The
main reason for this faster cooling is the elimina-
tion of the film box liner, which restricts circula-
tion of air through ventilation holes and hand-
holds in the box. No significant difference in
cooling time was found among layers within these
tray packs.

In the “transit” holding room (4°C or 40°F) the
apples maintained a constant stabilized tempera-
ture due to the good air circulation in the room.
There was little difference in apple temperature
due to the type of test package.

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is

WORKERS
FLOATING APPLES FROM BIN

EMPTY BIN

CARTON
TUBS OR TABLES OF SIZED APPLES

TRAY SUPPLY

SETUP (TOP & BOTTOM) & PLACEMENT ON OVERHEAD CONVEYOR

PACKING TRAYS OF APPLES INTO CARTONS

°e
1
2
3 SORTING APPLES
4
5
6
ai
8

PACKED CARTONS OF APPLES

9 OVERHEAD CONVEYOR CARRYING CARTONS TO PACKERS

10 CONVEYOR

VW WEIGHING & MARKING OF PACKED) FRUIT

12 CLOSING CARTONS & STAPLING

3 PIECE RATE COUNTER

14 PALLETIZED CARTONS OF APPLES

15 FORKLIFT TO MOVE FRUIT TO STORAGE

BINS OF APPLES & PACKING MATERIALS

TRANSPORTING PACKED CARTONS OF APPLES

ALSO TO SUPPLY

PN -5455

FIGURE 3.—Typical packing line. Tubs or tables and workers shown on only one side of line.

TABLE 3.—Estimated labor required to construct
and change apple displays in retail stores in
Houston, Tex., January 1975 '

Standard tray Tray display
display using wath is he
paper-wrapped mental film
Item apples overwrapped
trays
Man-minutes Man-minutes
Construct display:
Total time for
fulldisplay ........ 32.30 13.70
Berstraye ows,c6s: 514 ees 65 .23
Change display:
Total time for
fulldisplay ........ 24.12 14.04
eG T Ay sensi caerencie.c or .60 .36
Per tray element:
Remove from box,
set on table,
and adjust......... Ray 14
Remove film wrap .... _ .28

‘Data taken from time studies conducted in 3 different
stores. Times adjusted by 15 percent for personal time and
fatigue. Man-minutes reflect only direct labor operations.

In the “retail” holding room in which the layers
of apples were out of the boxes and on the table,
the small (less than !/2°C) temperature differences
of apples in the types of test trays were not signif-
icant. Apple temperatures in the film-wrapped
trays were slightly higher (21.4° to 21.5° C) than
the non-film wrapped trays (20.7° to 21.1°C).

Examination showed no significant difference
in pressure tests of the apples packed in the ex-
perimental and standard tray packs. Moisture
loss from apples (table 6) in the film-wrapped
trays was significantly lower (0.57 percent) than
from apples in the trays without a film overwrap
(3 percent). The higher moisture retention and
slightly higher temperatures of the film-wrapped
apples were not correlated with decay in this
laboratory test.

The atmosphere within the film-wrapped trays
contained about 4 percent CO2, but no damage
was found as a result of this CO, level in any of
the 1,070 apples cut open for sampling.

Apples packed in the standard or experimental
tray packs did not differ in soluble solids content
or acidity.

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Kier AI Fe) []
[Jie
° WORKERS
1 FLOATING APPLES FROM BIN
2 EMPTY BIN
3 SORTING APPLES
4 TRAY SUPPLY & PLACING ON CONVEYOR
5 FILLING TRAYS WITH APPLES
6 TRAY FILM OVERWRAP
7 HEAT TUNNEL
8 INNER CARTON, SETUP & SUPPLY
9 PLACEMENT OF TRAYS OF APPLES INTO CARTONS
10 SUPPLY & PLACEMENT OF TOP COVER & PAD
a TOP PAD SUPPLY
12 WEIGHING & MARKING
13 GLUE SEALING MACHINE
14 PALLETIZED CARTONS OF APPLES
15 FORKLIFT TO MOVE FRUIT TO STORAGE
ALSO SUPPLY BINS OF APPLES &

PACKING MATERIALS

PN-5456

FiGuRE 4.—Pilot packing line for film wrapping and packing apples in trays.

TABLE 4.—Bruising of extra fancy, Golden
Delicious apples (size 125) displayed in 10
retail stores in Houston, Tex., January 24-
31, 1975

Examination time ' Standard Experimental
and full paper-wrap film-wrapped
severity of bruise tray pack tray pack
Average Average
Arrival: percent percent
Ye- to %4-inch diameter..... 12.0 12.5
Over %4-inch diameter ..... 0 0
First inspection on display:
Y/e-to %4-inch diameter..... 33.1 25.5

Over *%-inch diameter ..... 6.3 3.9
Second inspection on display:

Y%/e-to 44-inch diameter..... tay LEA 40.6

Over %4-inch diameter ..... 6.1 1.7
Average of two inspections:

Y/2-to %4-inch diameter..... 42.4 33.0

Over *s-inch diameter ..... 6.2 2.8

‘Sampled 20 apples from each type of display in each store
for each inspection period: First inspection; standard pack, 160
apples; experimental pack, 180 apples. Second inspection;
standard pack, 180 apples; experimental pack, 180 apples.

TABLE 5.—Comparison of the average half-
cooling time (4) of film-wrapped tray pack,
and wrapped-fruit tray pack apples

Average
Packaging treatment half-cooling
time (Z)'
Hours

Film-wrapped tray pack 2.0.01. cisisie ies sicveisnec1e fel 96.5 ¢
Standard trayspacks, ais. steussse cuss sicilsroeines 2114:5° b
Inboard end of container trays? .............. 136.1 a
Outboard end of container trays*............. 81.0 b
Topitrayof container :)52).\2 sec actetssiee sis Sees 103.5 a
Middle tray oficontainer, 255. <-)e.-nspetieacte sie ernie 114.1 a
Bottomtray of container). <2 26 sich eicse eel 108.0 a

' Means within each factor not followed by the same letter
are significantly different at the 5-percent level by Duncan’s
multiple range test.

2 Average of pad tray pack and wrapped-fruit tray pack.

3 Inboard end of tray was monitored by a sensor in the fruit
on the tray closest to the center of the palletized unit.

* Outboard end of tray was monitored by a sensor in fruit on
the tray closest to the perimeter of the palletized unit.

PN-5451
FIGURE 5.— Automatic overwrapping machine. Trays of apples are moving into position to be overwrapped with shrink film.

y

SSS

PN-5452

FIGURE 6—Placing trays in box. Only one worker is required to place the packed film-wrapped trays into the bottom of the box.
The lid is placed over the bottom at a point later in the packing line.

10

TABLE 6.—Percentage of weight loss and decay of
fruit during simulated retail display at 21° C

(70°F)

Type of tray pack

Standard:
Pad. checker airetotee
Wrapped fruit.........
Film-wrapped...........

check

Weight loss
0°C room 21°C room
Decay
3.08 a! 1.24
3.24 a .57
o%e 1b 48

‘Means within each factor not followed by the same letter
are significantly different at the 5-percent level by Duncan’s

multiple range test.

CONCLUSIONS AND DISCUSSION

Application of a polyethylene shrink-film
overwrap on the Golden Delicious apple shipping
tray at the packinghouse should: (1) Encourage
retailers to display apples in the tray because it
reduces labor costs and the skill needed to build
and rotate displays and reduces the amount of
bruising and cullage that occurs during the retail
sales period; (2) reduce labor requirements and
skill needed to pack presized and presorted fruit,
especially in packing lines with a semiautomatic
tray filler and an automatic film-overwrapping
machine; and (3) improve apple quality because of
faster cooling, reduced moisture loss, and the ab-
sence of any adverse affects on internal quality or
decay.

Using the complete film-wrapped tray as a con-
sumer package does not seem very practical be-
cause (1) the tray is too big for the shopping bag
and for carrying out of the store, and (2) the sale
price of this large unit may be too high for most
consumers. However, further research into new
tray designs may show that trays can be subdi-
vided into a size, count, and weight that would ap-
peal to shoppers.

Research should also develop a way of unitizing
these individual film-wrapped trays of apples into
larger more economical shipping containers. Such
shipping containers could be reusable, further
reducing the costs of packaging and handling.

vr U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE: 1978 O—233-959