Establishing a centre of excellence for UK-based research on fresh produce quality

Structural and biochemical factors affecting apple response to long term low-oxygen storage

Maintaining apple quality during long-term storage is becoming increasingly important as UK growers compete with imported fruit. At the same time, advances such as Dynamic Controlled Atmosphere (DCA) storage are enabling real-time monitoring of fresh produce, improving control over storage conditions.

This PhD project is led by NRI postgraduate student Ros Fisher at the Produce Quality Centre (PQC)—a collaboration between the Natural Resources Institute (NRI), University of Greenwich, and NIAB-EMR—under the supervision of Debbie Rees and Richard Colgan.

The research investigates the structural and biochemical factors that determine why some apple varieties can tolerate lower oxygen levels during storage without developing damage. A range of techniques are being used to assess respiratory behaviour and stress responses, including LabPods and LabPodMinis alongside HarvestWatch™ chlorophyll fluorescence monitoring.

Further analysis uses confocal microscopy and TA.XT Plus texture profiling to examine fruit structure and firmness, while HPLC-MS metabolomics is applied to identify key biochemical changes. Emerging approaches, including VisiSens TD imaging and reactive oxygen species tissue printing, are also being developed to provide deeper insight into fruit storage performance.