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With the adjustment of agricultural structure and the improvement of residents' consumption level in China, frozen fruits and vegetables have attracted more and more attention from the public. The continuous growth of the consumption of frozen fruits and vegetables and the demand for processed products has also made the whole process freezing technology of frozen fruits and vegetables a research hotspot. The research and application status of quick-frozen fruits and vegetables freezing chain technology in recent years are summarized and analyzed in the article. The application of cold processing technology, frozen storage technology, transportation technology and information technology in the whole chain of quick-frozen fruits and vegetables from the front end to the back end is reviewed from the perspective of logistics. The new technologies and new materials applied to the freezing chain of quick-frozen fruits and vegetables are introduced. The problems existing in the research of quick-frozen fruits and vegetables freezing chain technology are summarized. It is proposed that the future research should be carried out from the aspects of modeling research, standardization of freezing chain technology, greening research and information technology empowerment of quick-frozen fruits and vegetables freezing chain, so as to provide reference for promoting the development of quick-frozen fruits and vegetables industry in China. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fruit processing industry is responsible for disposing of huge amounts of byproducts, especially fruit peels (FPs), which are often discarded in landfills. Using FPs in biotechnological processes contributes to a circular economy, reducing the environmental burden of FPs and increasing the revenue of the fruit processing industry. This study was focused on upgrading the nutritional value of orange (OPs) and banana (BPs) peels by solid-state fermentation (SSF) with filamentous fungi. SSF factors (moisture, fermentation time, inoculum size, ammonium sulfate (AS), and corn steep liquor (CSL)) and fungi species (Aspergillus ibericus and Rhizopus oryzae) were studied by a variable screening Plackett–Burman design. Both fungi grew on untreated FPs, increasing their protein content and antioxidant activity. Moisture, AS, and CSL were further studied by a Box–Behnken design with A. ibericus. Fermented OPs at 70% moisture and 0.005 g/g AS increased their protein content by 200%, whereas BPs at 70% moisture and 0.005 g/g CSL increased by 123%. Fermented peels were enriched in protein, fiber, and minerals, with a low content of carbohydrates and soluble sugars. Fermented OPs and BPs showed higher antioxidant activity than unfermented peels. The SSF of these FPs is an innovative approach that contributes to obtaining rich nutrient-fermented peels for food. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) is a serious threat to the fruit industry. Implementing monitoring procedures is essential for effective pest control. The monitoring of B. dorsalis is predominantly conducted through the use of yellow sticky traps and baited traps, followed by manual counting. However, this approach is both time consuming and labor intensive. In this study, we employed automated identification and counting devices for monitoring the adult population dynamics of B. dorsalis in four counties with disparate climatic types in Yunnan. The differing climatic types and temperature fluctuations resulted in disparate population dynamics of B. dorsalis in the four counties, yet there were two peaks of adult emergence in each year. Furthermore, the population of B. dorsalis was correlated with temperature. The automated monitoring system employed in the study permitted the daily monitoring of adult B. dorsalis populations, thereby facilitating the tracking of the daily dynamics of B. dorsalis by farmers and researchers alike. Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel) (Diptera: Tephritidae) is a global economic pest that poses a serious threat to the fruit industry. In the southwest of China, Yunnan Province sustains a severe infestation of B. dorsalis. An automated monitoring system designed for B. dorsalis was employed in this study to elucidate the annual population dynamics of B. dorsalis in four counties: Yuanjiang, Huaping, Guangnan, and Ludian in Yunnan. The system utilizes sex parapheromone and image recognition technology. The data uploaded by the device are used to analyze the annual population dynamics of B. dorsalis in different regions. The results showed that the populations of adult B. dorsalis in all four counties peaked twice annually, with Yuanjiang experiencing the earliest peak periods, followed by Huaping, Guangnan, and Ludian. Adult B. dorsalis occurred in Yuanjiang throughout the year, and Yuanjiang had the highest number of B. dorsalis monitored. In Huaping, adult B. dorsalis occurred in March–December and was highly active, with a high population density in 2019. Bactrocera dorsalis did not occur in December in Guangnan but only in May–October in Ludian. Bactrocera dorsalis abundance was correlated with temperature in all four areas. The outcomes of this experiment provide a practical foundation for developing control strategies targeting B. dorsalis in various orchards across each county. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An energy supply crisis is impacting all the branches, including the agriculture and food industry. The wise and responsible utilization of plant raw materials already cultivated is becoming a must in the country's economy. Not only the waste of the resources included but also the environmental challenge are concerns behind the not exploited food production by-streams and leftovers' valorization. Fruits and vegetables' out of the market quality "beauty" standards are still valuable sources of nutritious compounds. The conversion of raw materials into edible products can be provided by many techniques, with three-dimensional printing being the most individualized one. The main objective of this review was to summarize the existing efforts for the valorization of fruits and vegetable residuals into edible 3D inks and then 3D printed products. The clustering analysis was used for the separation of certain research approaches in fruit and vegetable wastes exploitation for 3D printing inks' formulation. As the multilayer deposit technique is strongly dependent on the printing conditions and 3D ink formulation, therefore the tabularized description was included presenting the nozzle diameter, printing speed and other conditions specified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The regulation of fruit development is a complex process and a core issue in the fruit tree industry. To investigate the role of PbGIF1 in pear fruit development, we identified a transcription factor PbbHLH137 that regulates pear (Pyrus bretschneideri) fruit development by screening a yeast library constructed from fruit cDNA. Yeast two‐hybrid (Y2H), bimolecular fluorescence complementation (BiFC), and split luciferase complementation (split‐LUC) assays were performed to confirm the PbbHLH137–PbGIF1 interaction. By tracing the complete fruit development process, we found that PbbHLH137 expression was closely related to fruit size and highly involved at the late pear fruit development stage. Transgenic experiments showed that heterologous expression of PbbHLH137 or PbGIF1 promoted fruit enlargement. PbbHLH137 promoted mainly the expansion of fruit cell volume, whereas PbGIF1 mainly increased the number of cells. Further LUC experiments demonstrated that PbGIF1 promoted the transcriptional activation ability of PbbHLH137. Our work identified PbbHLH137 as a transcription factor that regulates fruit development, and showed that PbGIF1 played an ongoing role during fruit development, making it a candidate gene for genetic improvement of pear fruit development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Of all the plant diseases that occur in Australia, banana bunchy top disease would rank high on any list of those that have had the greatest impact on society. Bunchy top first became a major problem in Australia during World War 1 in the Tweed Valley in New South Wales, close to the border of Queensland. The Soldier Settlement Scheme was initiated to provide a livelihood for returned soldiers, and the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales was chosen as the site for a new subtropical fruit industry. Physically and psychologically damaged men were encouraged to settle on the land to grow bananas, only to be left in ruins within two years because bunchy top had destroyed their plantations. Bunchy top did not discriminate, and many other well-established growers also 'went broke'. The cries for assistance from the banana growers made it to the federal Parliament in Melbourne, and a Bunchy Top Investigation Committee was formed in 1924 with funding equally contributed by the New South Wales, Queensland, and Australian Governments. Charles Magee was the full-time plant pathologist appointed to the investigation, and he did most of the research. Most histories of the bunchy top research program follow the written accounts of Magee, but he only provided a narrow perspective. Several of the major hypotheses about the epidemiology of bunchy top disease, such as that it was spread in the plant's suckers and was vectored by the banana aphid Pentalonia nigronervosa , were established by growers such as William John (aka Jack) Burton Marks well before the Bunchy Top Investigation Committee began. This paper describes the beginnings of the subtropical banana industry, the introduction of bunchy top disease, and efforts by the scientific and farming communities to find a preventative treatment or cure for the disease. Banana bunchy top disease is the most serious viral disease of bananas in the world, and nearly wiped out the Australian banana industry in the early twentieth century. The impacts of the disease epidemic were hardest felt by veterans of World War 1, who moved to the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales to create a subtropical fruit industry as part of the Soldier Settlement Scheme. This article describes the early history of the Australian banana industry, the introduction and spread of bunchy top disease, and efforts to develop a disease management plan. Photograph by Scot C. Nelson, University of Hawaiʻi. This article belongs to the Special Issue: History of Plant Pathology in Australasia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Dried fruits are renowned for their nutritional value, particularly their seeds. However, their skins, shells, and hulls also hold significant nutritional and commercial potential, yet remain largely unexplored for their bioactive compounds. This study examines the teguments and shells of three types of dried fruits – hazelnut, peanut, and two almond varieties. Ethanol extracts from these by-products reveal a variety of phytochemicals with antioxidant, antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, and antiviral properties, confirmed through in vitro and in vivo assays. Teguments contain higher polyphenol levels compared to shells, with 24 compounds identified via HPLC analysis. The Achak almond tegument extract demonstrates strong antiradical activity, significant antimicrobial effects, and notable antiviral properties at a low concentration. Moreover, extracts from Achak almond tegument and hazelnut shells exhibit notable anti-inflammatory properties. This underscores the potential of utilizing dried fruit by-products to create innovative, value-added products, supporting environmental sustainability and boosting the competitiveness of the dried fruit industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The 'Red Fuji' apple (Malus domestica), is one of the most important and popular economic crops worldwide in the fruit industry. Using PacBio HiFi long reads and Hi-C reads, we assembled a high-quality haplotype-resolved genome of 'Red Fuji', with sizes of 668.7 and 668.8 Mb, and N50 sizes of 34.1 and 31.4 Mb. About 97.2% of sequences were anchored in 34 chromosomes. We annotated both haploid genomes, identifying a total of 95,439 protein-coding genes in the two haplotype genomes, with 98% functional annotation. The haplotype-resolved genome of 'Red Fuji' apple stands as a precise benchmark for an array of analyses, such as comparative genomics, transcriptomics, and allelic expression studies. This comprehensive resource is paramount in unraveling variations in allelic expression, advancing quality improvements, and refining breeding efforts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2021, the Shanting District Fruit Industry Service Center conducted an application test of a treatment for jujube witches' broom disease using Changyun jujube. The results demonstrated that when diseased Changhong jujube plants were grafted with Changyun jujube in the spring using baric or cleft grafting, the majority of the new shoots of Changyun jujube exhibited no symptoms of witches' broom disease, while a few exhibited symptoms of the disease. With the growth of new shoots, the symptoms of witches' broom disease gradualy abated, returning to norma growth and development. Similarly, the symptoms of witches' broom disease on the rootstock below the grafting mouth also gradualy abated, returning to normal. The Changyun jujube rootstock was utilized as the intermediate rootstock to grafting the jujube cultivars Qiyuexian and Fucuimi. The two cultivars were subsequently afixed with branch bark from the witches' broom disease. The two cultivars did not exhibit any symptoms of witches' broom diseae, thus providing aa opportunity to investigate potential treatments for this diseae in jujube. Finaly, the cultivation techniques of the Changyun jujube were presented. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: To develop and examine an efficient and reliable jujube grading model with reduced computational time, which could be utilized in the food processing and packaging industries to perform quick grading and pricing of jujube as well as for the other similar types of fruits. Design/methodology/approach: The whole process begins with manual analysis and collection of four jujube grades from the jujube tree, in addition to this jujube image acquisition was performed utilizing MVS which is further followed by image pre-processing and augmentation tasks. Eventually, classification models (i.e. proposed model, from scratch and pre-trained VGG16 and AlexNet) were trained and validated over the original and augmented datasets to discriminate the jujube into maturity grades. Findings: The highest success rates reported over the original and augmented datasets were 97.53% (i.e. error of 2.47%) and 99.44% (i.e. error of 0.56%) respectively using Adam optimizer and a learning rate of 0.003. Research limitations/implications: The investigation relies upon a single view of the jujube image and the outer appearance of the jujube. In the future, multi-view image capturing system could be employed for the model training/validation. Practical implications: Due to the vast functional derivatives of jujube, the identification of maturity grades of jujube is paramount in the fruit industry, functional food production industries and pharmaceutical industry. Therefore, the proposed model which is practically feasible and easy to implement could be utilized in such industries. Originality/value: This research examines the performance of proposed CNN models for selected optimizer and learning rates for the grading of jujube maturity into four classes and compares them with the classical models to depict the sublime model in terms of accuracy, the number of parameters, epochs and computational time. After a thorough investigation of the models, it was discovered that the proposed model transcends both classical models in all aspects for both the original and augmented datasets utilizing Adam optimizer with learning rate of 0.003. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Patulin, a toxic secondary metabolite produced by certain molds (Penicillium, Aspergillus, and Byssochlamys), poses a significant health risk when present in apple juice products above permissible levels. Its presence is a major concern for both consumers and regulatory bodies due to its potential carcinogenic and mutagenic effects. Minimizing patulin concentration in apple juice products requires a multifaceted approach involving various stages of apple fruit production, from orchard management to processing and storage. This review explores the pre‐ and postharvest strategies associated with minimizing patulin concentration in apple juice products. It examines the role of good agricultural practices in reducing mold contamination in orchards and discusses the importance of proper postharvest handling, including fruit sorting and washing to remove contaminated apples before processing. During processing, factors such as temperature, pH, and processing time play crucial roles in minimizing patulin levels. Innovative processing technologies, such as pulsed electric fields (PEF), ultraviolet (UV) radiation, high‐pressure processing, enzymatic, and chemical degradation have shown promise in reducing patulin concentration while preserving the sensory and nutritional quality of the juice. Furthermore, effective storage practices, such as maintaining proper temperature and humidity levels, are essential for preventing patulin formation during storage. Continuous monitoring and analytical testing for patulin content throughout the production chain are necessary to ensure compliance with regulatory standards and to guarantee the safety of apple juice products. Despite advancements in technology and production practices, challenges remain in effectively minimizing patulin concentration. These include the need for further research to develop more efficient detection methods, the adoption of sustainable and eco‐friendly practices in orchard management, and the dissemination of knowledge and best practices to stakeholders across the apple juice supply chain. In conclusion, minimizing patulin concentration in apple juice products requires a holistic approach that integrates preventive measures, innovative processing technologies, and stringent quality control measures. By addressing these challenges, the apple juice industry can ensure the production of safe and high‐quality products that meet regulatory standards and consumer expectations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fruit and beverage industry faces challenges related to waste management and environmental pollution due to rapid industrial expansion. Fruit industry waste, such as blueberry pomace, holds the promise of enhancing gut health and providing valuable antioxidants. Concurrently, buttermilk, a prominent dairy product, offers nutritional and technological benefits but remains underutilized. This study aimed to evaluate the incorporation of blueberry pomace (0%, 2%, 4%, 6%, 8%, and 10%) into buttermilk at varying levels and assess its impact on the physicochemical, antioxidant, microbiological, and sensory characteristics of the buttermilk. Buttermilk samples were supplemented with different concentrations of blueberry pomace and subjected to analysis over a two-week storage period (4 ± 1 °C). The addition of blueberry pomace led to alterations in the pH, dry matter, water holding capacity, color parameters, total phenolic content, and antioxidant activity. Microbiological analysis revealed the absence of Enterobacteriaceae, yeast, or molds. Sensory evaluation indicated significant differences among samples, with the highest scores observed for the buttermilk supplemented with 2% and 4% blueberry pomace. Incorporating blueberry pomace improved the overall acceptability and sensory properties. This research highlights the potential of fruit industry by-products to enhance the functionality and health benefits of dairy products, which is a promising way to effectively utilize waste. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines the total factor productivity (TFP) of the South African deciduous fruit sector over an 8-year period (2014–2021), using industry-level data for five fruit types (apples, pears, plums, apricots, and peaches). TFP growth was estimated using the Färe-Primont (FP) index and decomposed into technical change (TECH) and efficiency change (TFPE). The results show that the TFP of the industry increased by 27% (3.53% per year) due to a 35% (4.38% per year) increase in technical change, while TFPE decreased by 6% (−0.81% per year). The TFPE breakdown into technical efficiency (OTE) and scale-mix efficiency (OSME) reveals that 6% decrease in OSME was entirely responsible for TFPE slowdown, while OTE remained unchanged. While both sub-sector contributions were significant, stone fruit grew at a faster rate (32%, or 4.05% per year) than the pome sub-sector (21%, or 2.74% per year). Overall, entire industry, sub-sectors, and fruit types show that TECH was key to TFP growth, whereas TFPE slowed it. Investments in efficiency support programmes have the potential to enhance sector growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using data at the HS‐6 product level, this study presents evidence on the export survival of China's fresh fruit during the period 2002–2019, and identifies the impact of non‐tariff measures (NTMs) on the hazard rate of trade disruption. The results show that the average length of 2239 trade spells is 5.16 years. Notably, 67.04 per cent of these spells are no more than three years long, whereas only 7.95 per cent are more than 18 years long. Compared with major fruit‐exporting countries, the trade spell distribution of China's fresh fruit exports lacks advantages. The hazard rate can reach 0.41 in the first year of export and is negatively duration dependent. The implementation of NTMs by importing countries has significantly increased the hazard rate. The positive effect of NTMs on the hazard rate is primarily driven by non‐technical measures. Notably, technical barriers to trade measures decrease the export hazard rate of China's fresh fruits with comparative advantages, because these measures focus on product quality. Meanwhile, non‐technical measures increase the export hazard rate of such fruits; this may be because of the possible shock on the relevant fruit industry in the destination market. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Consumer trust in fruit industry is partly depended on the labeling of its geographical origin. The accurate label is not only of great significance to consumers and retailers, but also for their brands shaping. This work evaluated the utility of Fourier transform near-infrared spectroscopy (FT-NIRS) in identifying the geographical origins of Chinese pears including Laiyang pear (Pyrus bretschneideri cv. Laiyang), Dangshan pear (Pyrus bretschneideri Rehd. cv. Dangshansuli), and Korla pear (Pyrus sinkiangensis T. T. Yu). FT-NIR spectra of 316 pears from three different geographical origins were obtained in the spectral range of 10,000–4000 cm−1. Preliminary investigation was first conducted based on principal component analysis (PCA) to confirm the similar spectral features of samples within one class, and the results showed that PC1 and PC2 were effective for the identification. Partial least square discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) models based on full spectra indicated that the optimal classification based on second-order derivative (Der2) preprocessed spectra achieved 100% correct classification rates (CCRs) in all datasets. After that, the multivariate selection strategies including two-dimensional correlation spectroscopy (2D-COS), competitive adaptive reweighted sampling (CARS) combined with successive projection algorithm (SPA), and uninformative variable elimination (UVE) combined with SPA were individually optimized for selecting the characteristic wavenumbers from full FT-NIR spectra. On the basis of simplified PLS-DA models establishment, the CCRs in calibration, cross-validation, and prediction sets of the selected CARS-SPA-PLS-DA model achieved 98.58%, 98.11%, and 98.08%, respectively. This research demonstrated that FT-NIRS combined with multivariate analysis can be successfully employed to identify the geographical origins of Chinese pears. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Establishing the Greater Food Approach and promoting the Yangtze River Economic Belt's national major regional development strategy can better support and serve the agricultural power and Chinese-style modernization. This paper introduces the characteristics of fruit industry in 16 autonomous prefectures and 47 autonomous counties under the jurisdiction of the Yangtze River Economic Belt. It studies the intellectual property resources of brand marks from the aspects of geographical indications, collective trademarks, certification trademarks, well-known trademarks in China and national design patents, and analyzes the main problems of brand and high-quality development of fruit industry in these ethnic autonomous areas. Finally, it puts forward some strategies, such as improving the protection of intellectual property rights of geographical indications, using intellectual property rights of brand signs, building modern seed industry upgrading project, drawing lessons from the experience of thousand villages demonstration project, ensuring that large-scale poverty does not occur, and building a diversified food supply system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Post-harvest fruit rot caused by Alternaria species is one of the most important threats to the fruit industry. Post-harvest rot on sweet cherry (Prunus avium) fruit was observed in the fruit markets of the Haidian district of Beijing, China. The fungal isolates obtained from the infected sweet cherry fruits matched the descriptions of Alternaria alternata based on the morphology and multi-gene (ITS, endo-PG, and Alta1) sequence analysis. Pathogenicity tests indicated that ACT-3 was the most virulent isolate, exhibiting typical post-harvest fruit rot symptoms. Physiological studies revealed that the optimal conditions for the growth of ACT-3 were temperature of 28℃, water activity of 0.999, and pH of 8 with 87, 85, and 86mm radial growth of ACT-3 on a potato dextrose agar (PDA) medium, respectively, at 12days post-inoculation (dpi). Moreover, the fungus showed the highest growth on a Martin agar medium (MAM) modified (85mm) and a PDA medium (84mm) at 12 dpi. The proliferation of the fungus was visualized inside the fruit tissues by confocal and scanning electron microscope (SEM), revealing the invasion and destruction of fruit tissues. Alternaria mycotoxins, tenuazonic acid (TeA), and alternariol (AOH) were detected in five representative isolates by HPLC analysis. The highest concentrations of TeA (313 μg/mL) and AOH (8.9 μg/mL) were observed in ACT-6 and ACT-3 isolates, respectively. This study is the first to present a detailed report on the characteristics and proliferation of A. alternata associated with sweet cherry fruit rot and the detection of toxic metabolites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Many countries conduct fruit fly surveillance but, while there are guidelines, practices vary widely. This review of some countries in the Pacific region demonstrates the diversity of fruit fly surveillance practices. All utilize 3 parapheromones—trimedlure, cuelure, and methyl eugenol—to trap adult male fruit flies. Some target species are not attracted to these compounds so other attractants such as food-based lures are used in certain areas or circumstances. Lure loading and replacement cycles depend on the target species and the local climate. Malathion and dichlorvos (DDVP) are commonly used toxicants, but not in all countries, and other toxicants are being developed to replace these older-generation pesticides. Jackson and Lynfield are commonly used trap designs but newer designs such as cone and Biotrap are being adopted. Local factors such as chemical registrations and climate affect the choice of trap, lure, dispenser, toxicant, and bait concentration. These choices affect the efficacy of traps, in turn influencing optimal trap deployment in space and time. Most states now follow similar practices around trap inspection, servicing, and data handling, but these processes will be disrupted by emerging automated trap technologies. Ultimately, different practices can be attributed to the unique fruit fly risk profiles faced by each state, particularly the suite of fruit flies already present and those that threaten from nearby. Despite the diversity of approaches, international trade in fruit continues with the assurance that fruit fly surveillance practices evolve and improve according to each country's risk profile and incursion experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of edge devices used in horticulture and the fruit industry, traditional high-precision models prove to be computationally intensive and challenging to deploy on terminals with limited computing resources. Therefore, in this work, we propose a lightweight target detection algorithm, called Fruit-Yolo, applied to edge farming devices where there are insufficient hardware resources and weak computational power to achieve classification and localization of fruit. More specifically, we employ the PPYOLO-Tiny model as our benchmark, where we undertake the redesign of both the backbone and FPN network components of the model. Additionally, we adapt the anchor framework to better suit the requirements of fruit detection, ultimately resulting in the creation of our streamlined network (Fruit-Yolo). Then, the filtered pruning based on geometric median algorithm is used to prune the model. The test results showed that the number of parameters of model after pruning was reduced by 20%, and the mAP decreased by only 0.2%. To verify the effectiveness of the proposed method, five algorithms including theYOLOv5s, SSD 300, MobileNetv3 and Faster R-CNN were compared. The comparison results show that the Fruit-Yolo model has the smallest size (3.85 MB), high accuracy (98.6%) and fast detection speed (32.77FPS). The results indicated that the proposed method can provide a technical reference for the deployment of deep learning models in intelligent agricultural machines at the edge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the critical role played by weights and measurements in business and more specifically in the area of fresh fruits and vegetables trade, still little is known about the utilisation of weights and measures among fresh fruits and vegetable traders in big markets in Dar es salaam. In this study, we specifically assessed the usage of weights and measurements among fresh fruits and vegetables in markets. What causes low usage of weights and measures instruments among informal traders and what impact does the use of weights and measures has on traders' businesses. The study was conducted in Dar es Salaam City at ilala and Stereo markets and used mixed methods approach with a sample of 200 respondents. Data were collected through questionnaire and in-depth interviews. Data were analysed descriptively by SPSS and content analysis manually. Findings provide that there is low usage of standard weighing and measuring instruments among fruits and vegetable traders in the markets and this was majorly caused by low awareness, traders perception and inadequate inspections. The study recommends periodic training to traders on the importance of using standard weights and measures in the businesses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ceratitis capitata is responsible for significant economic losses in the fruit production industry, and the market lacks biopesticides that are effective but also cheaper and less contaminating, with fewer negative impacts on the environment. In this regard, the present study suggests as potential options ethanolic extracts from several Macaronesian plants, which inhibit the oviposition and are toxic to C. capitata, and whose preparation involve a non-toxic solvent (i.e., ethanol), low energy expenditure and cheap apparatus (i.e., maceration at room temperature). Among the evaluated species, the extracts of Hedychium gardnerianum, Cistus symphytifolius and Salvia canariensis are the most active (50 mg/mL), revealing an increase in C. capitata adults' mortality from 21.15% to 27.41% after 72 h, a value statistically identical to azadirachtin (25.93%) at the recommended concentration (0.88 mg/mL). Considering the quantity and biomass available to prepare a biopesticide in the future, and the level of activity, the ethanolic extract of H. gardnerianum was fractionated and each fraction tested. The water fraction at 50 mg/mL proved to be more effective than the original extract, both in terms of mortality (57.69%), with LT50 = 72.5 h, and oviposition deterrence (83.43%), values statistically higher than those obtained by azadirachtin at 0.88 mg/mL. Analysis of this fraction by HPLC-MS/MS showed that it is mainly composed of glycosylated derivatives of quercetin and myricetin in addition to some triterpenes. These findings highlight some Macaronesian species, and in particular, the more polar fraction of H. gardnerianum ethanolic extract, as promising and ecological alternatives to conventional insecticides, for use in the integrated management of the C. capitata pest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]