Evaluating fresh-cut mushrooms held at different storage temperatures.

At the UC Davis Postharvest Technology Center, we are excited to announce that our 19^th annual Fresh Cut Products: Maintaining Quality and Safety Workshop is right around the corner! This year, the workshop will be held at the beautiful Buehler Alumni and Visitor's Center from September 23^rd-25^th. Our team of instructors understands that fresh-cut standards have become increasingly rigorous as consumers demand high quality, fresh, nutritious, safe, and long lasting produce.  Our specialists are provide cutting-edge information that allow workshop participants to achieve this goal of high quality fruits and vegetables.  Over the years, our fresh cut workshops have proven to be extremely valuable to professionals seeking to increase the value of their produce.

Organized by Dr. Marita Cantwell, this three day workshop offers lectures, demonstrations, and discussions for food professionals in aspects of production, processing, packaging, distribution, and quality assurance of fresh-cut products.  Some specific topics include consumer perception of product quality and safety, physiology and biochemistry of fresh-cut products, nutritional composition of fresh-cut products, temperature management, and more.  Additionally, participants will gain working knowledge of time-honored and new procedures in the fresh-cut industry. Our workshop traditionally has featured discussions on microbial food safety, sensory evaluation, and the effects of temperatures and modified atmospheres on fresh-cut fruit and vegetable quality.

Evaluating fresh-cut iceberg lettuce held at different storage temperatures.

Who do we believe should attend? Our workshop is widely applicable to small, local, and regional produce processors to large businesses.  Professionals such as food scientists, food engineers, quality assurance personnel, and more are strongly encouraged to attend.  Participants in the past have remarked that this workshop was “stimulating”, “excellent”, and “relevant to industry”.  In order to ensure an optimal learning environment, this course is limited to 60 participants. Please don't miss out on this opportunity, we invite you to register quickly using our online registration site or by calling Ms. Penny Stockdale, our registration coordinator at 530-752-7672!  We hope to see you there!