"Those small and sometimes inconvenient sticky labels on produce may eventually be replaced by laser “tattoo” technology now being tested by Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and University of Florida (UFL) scientists.
Called laser etching, the new technology puts a tattoo on grapefruit and other produce so it can be identified at the supermarket checkout lines. The technology was invented by former UFL scientist Greg Drouillard, now with Sunkist Growers. Grapefruit has always been labeled with sticky paper labels that mar the fruit and stick to one another in storage. The labels are also easily removed, making it more difficult to track a piece of produce back to the source if the need arises.
Microbiologist Jan Narciso at the ARS Citrus and Subtropical Products Laboratory in Winter Haven, Fla., and UFL researcher Ed Etxeberria investigated laser technology as an alternative to sticky paper labels.
A carbon dioxide laser beam was used to etch information into the first few outer cells of the fruit peel. The mark can’t be peeled off, washed off or changed, offering a way to trace the fruit back to its original source. This permanent etching into the fruit peel does not increase water loss or the entrance of food pathogens or postharvest pathogens if the laser label is covered with wax"
By Sharon Durham, (ARS)
Source: USDA (ARS) http://www.ars.usda.gov
Looking for effective fertilizers or plant nutrients, please visit our website at www.ferticell.com or call (602)233-2223.
No comments:
Post a Comment