How 1-methylcyclopropene has altered the Washington state apple industry

Commercialization of 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) has provided a new tool to storage operators for management of fruit quality in the postharvest environment. For apple as an example, availability of the commercial 1-MCP product SmartFresh has brought an additional dimension to decisions regarding postharvest chemical treatments, storage temperature regimes, storage atmospheres, and planned storage duration based on fruit maturity at harvest. Poststorage impacts of 1-MCP use at harvest on handling and packing procedures have also become apparent with commercial use. Marketing programs have also been impacted because the tails of the manifest (large/small sizes, lower color grades) can be held longer in cold storage after packing primarily as a result of slower loss of firmness in many cultivars. Although some quality issues, primarily related to physiological disorders occurring on specific cultivars, are yet to be fully resolved, continuing widespread use of 1-MCP is indicative of its commercial usefulness.