The East Malling Research (EMR) and Marden Fruit Show Society have invited leading researchers from the European ISAFRUIT project to inform UK growers of developments in control of storage rots in apple without the use of pesticides.
The Top-Fruit Storage Day will take place on Tuesday, March 24, in the East Malling Conference Centre.
Storage rots in the UK can account for up to 10 per cent of losses for growers, if appropriate control measures are not applied. Speakers from the Netherlands, Belgium and the UK will outline their research on several non-pesticide techniques such as hot water, biological control agents and GRAS (Generally Recognised As Safe) treatments, mainly with natural substances.
Where hot-water treatments are used, it is important that there are no adverse effects on fruit quality. David Johnson from EMR will present results from the ISAFRUIT project and discuss the possibility of developing safe, effective hot-water treatments for Cox, Gala, Braeburn and Golden Delicious apples.
Dr Frank Schrool will discuss his experience of developing hot-water treatments in the Netherlands, while Dr Jijakli Haissam will outline his development of new bio-control agents, one of which is effective against wound pathogens and is already being developed for commercial production.
Dr Angela Berrie from EMR will discuss results from DEFRA-funded research, in which she developed what she considers to be the best approach for controlling latent infections of significance in UK stores. She will compare it with results from her research on hot-water and safe chemical treatments investigated in the ISAFRUIT project.
In addition, Dr Luca Corelli Grappadelli from Italy will provide background to the ISAFRUIT Project, while Dr Sharon Hall from Warwick HRI will present results from consumer studies carried out by social scientists in the Netherlands, which examined consumer preferences for fruit, particularly apples.
This event, including lunch, will be £10 for EMR, Marden Fruit Show Society and ISAFRUIT members and £20 for non-members.
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