Apples

Apples
In United States, apples are grown in practically every state. They are grown commercially in 35 states with the heaviest production taking place in Washington, New York, Virginia, Michigan, California, and Pennsylvania. There are hundreds of varieties of apples that may be grown on trees produced from seedlings that were grown in nurseries, or from grafts on existing apple tree. The fruit is developed on spurs formed by branchlets of three or more years to growth, the tree yielding for many years thereafter. Fertilizer of the soil and periodic pruning and thinning of apple trees are considered necessary for good apple crops.

Apples are used as the fresh fruit, and apples not suitable for fresh fruit are used for the production of juice, cider, sauce, vinegar, jam, jelly, pie filling and as an ingredient in a variety of baked goods. Pectin is extracted from the peels and cores.

After harvesting, the fruit are washed in dilute HCL or NaOH solutions to remove spray residues and are rinsed. Apples are cooled to and stored at 32 degree F until shipped. Increased storage life is attained by reducing the amount of oxygen and increasing the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere around the apples.
Apples

Processing of Raspberries

Processing of Raspberries
At the processing plant, the fruit is washed with gentle sprays of water and drained on a metal mesh belt. If the product is to be handled in the fresh state, it is placed in small, retail sized baskets usually with a cellophane over wrap and quickly cooled to 31 to 32 degrees F. In this condition, the fruit has a storage life only 5 – 7 days.

Some raspberries are frozen for the bakery trade and many for the manufacture of raspberry jam and jelly. To prepare them for freezing, the washed and drained berries may be placed in wooden barrels without sugar, and then placed in a room at 0 degree F or below and allowed to freeze slowly. Usually however, they are mixed with sugar (three parts fruits to one part sugar) then packed in slip cover cans of 50 Ib capacity. The covered fruit is allowed to freeze in cold rooms at 0 degree F or below.

In the manufacture of jam, the deforested fruit is passed through a pulper that allows essentially all the berries with the seeds to pass through the strainer. Sugar and water are then added the amount of sugar depending on whether the frozen product was packed with or without sugar. About 0.1 – 0.15% dispersed pectin is then added and the product is heated in open kettles to concentrate it to soluble solids content about 68%. Citric acid solution is then added to adjust the pH to 3.3 and the fruit is packed in glass jars and vacuum capped. The jars of product are then heated to bring the temperature of all parts to about 160 degree F after which the product is cooled.
Processing of Raspberries