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To supply the off-season melon market, Europe imports from distant markets in other countries, mainly Brazil. Cold transportation takes at least 15–20 days, thus increasing the risk of quality losses. Moreover, product deliveries, especially in international markets, can result in supply chain inefficiencies that negatively affect carbon footprint and expected freshness. Implementing quality sensors and advanced cold chain management could help to reduce these problems. The objective of this work was to monitor a real transoceanic intermodal transport of melons (Brazil to Spain), through the implementation of multi-distributed environmental sensors (15 ibuttons loggers) to evaluate the remaining shelf-life (RSHL) of melons at destination. The sensors’ location within the cargo reached a maximum variability range of 4 ◦C. Using digital sensors to track temperature variations, it was verified that in different locations in the container, the melon RSHL at the end of the journey, was nine days and 19 h in colder spots, while in the hottest spot, the RSHL was reduced to five days and 22 h. This fact has substantial implications for improved tracking of temperature to maintain fruit quality for market, potentially reducing waste, and contributing to higher profit margins for international food supply chains.

Supplemental material, FST873227 Supplemental Material for UV-C pretreatment of fresh-cut faba beans (Vicia faba) for shelf life extension: Effects of domestic microwaving for consumption by Elena Collado, Tâmmila Venzke Klug, Ginés Benito Martínez-Hernández, Francisco Artés-Hernández, Ascensión Martínez-Sánchez, Encarna Aguayo, Francisco Artés, Juan A Fernández and Perla A Gómez in Food Science and Technology International

Resumen: La elaboración de hortalizas de IV Gama requiere de una etapa de desinfección que reduzca el crecimiento de microorganismosalterantes y patogénicos. En general, esta desinfección requiere de la adición de productos sanitizantes como el cloroo sus hipocloritos. Debido a que el cloro reacciona con otros compuestos orgánicos, dando lugar a la formación desubproductos halogenados perjudiciales para la salud como trihalometanos y cloraminas, las preocupaciones sobre latoxicidad de estos derivados han dado lugar al interés actual por utilizar productos alternativos y amigables con el medioambiente. El interés por estos nuevos desinfectantes no solo se debe a su capacidad de inactivación frente a una ampliagama de microorganismos patógenos y deteriorantes, sino también a su capacidad para mantener la calidad sensorial delproducto. Actualmente, existen diversas técnicas sostenibles y emergentes de desinfección que pueden reemplazar al cloro,proporcionando otros beneficios, como sucede con el ozono (O3), el agua electrolizada (AE), las radiaciones ionizantes o no,los antimicrobianos naturales, las bacteriocinas, los tratamientos térmicos, determinados agentes químicos como el ácidoperoxiacético (AP) y otros muchos. En el presente trabajo revisaremos la eficacia del O3, AE y AP. Todos ellos handemostrado su eficacia microbicida con efecto frente a bacterias patógenas presentes en hortalizas de IV Gama. Summary: The elaboration of fresh-cut vegetables needs a disinfection step to reduce the growth of spoilage and pathogenic microorganisms.In general, this requires the addition of sanitizers such as chlorine or hypochlorites. However, due to the fact that chlorinereacts with other organic compounds, leading to the formation of halogenated by-products that are harmful to health, such astrihalomethanes and chloramines, concerns over the toxicity of these derivatives have led to the current interest of usingalternative and environmentally-friendlier products. The concern over these new sanitizers is not only due to their inactivationcapabilities against a wide range of pathogenic and spoilage microorganisms, but at the same time, over their ability to maintainthe sensory quality of the product. Currently, there are a number of sustainable and emerging disinfection techniques that canreplace chlorine, providing other benefits, such as ozone (O3), electrolyzed water (AE), ionizing or non-ionizing radiation,natural antimicrobials, bacteriocins, heat treatments, certain chemical agents as peroxyacetic acid and many others. In thispaper, we review the effectiveness of O3, AE and peroxyacetic acid. All of them have proven their microbicidal efficacy againstpathogenic bacteria in fresh-cut vegetables.