Use of LEDs for shelf life extension of leafy greens

在加拿大的杂货店里，每年有超过70亿美元的新鲜农产品被浪费，主要是因为商店更喜欢展示/销售看起来对顾客有吸引力的农产品。这不仅造成了与食物浪费相关的负面社会和环境内涵，而且还代表了加拿大零售商的收入来源损失，并且是纳税人支付大笔费用来处理生物质的成本。我们实验室最近的一项研究表明，用正确的LED灯的强度和波长来照射蔬菜，可以延长蔬菜的保质期，而不是目前在杂货店里发现的荧光灯。暴露在适当的led下可以通过调节植物呼吸来防止叶类蔬菜枯萎，从而保持叶子的“脆脆”。** LED灯制造商U科技公司已经确定水果和蔬菜的采后储存是他们可以抓住的潜在市场。然而，虽然U技术公司目前生产用于家庭和商业部门的轮廓照明的led，但他们的灯并不面向蔬菜储存。此外，虽然已经研究了LED波长对生物质保存的影响，但很少有研究关注光强度对水果和蔬菜的影响。因此，这项合作研究项目由U科技公司和麦吉尔大学发起，旨在测试不同波长、不同强度的LED，研究LED在菠菜、羽衣甘蓝和罗勒收获后储存中的多用途性。主要申请人Lefsrud博士在植物生长环境的增强和控制方面有一个成熟的研究项目，在该领域发表了26篇论文。他是不同照明系统（LED和其他补充照明），营养输送系统和受控环境加热的植物生产专家。Kam Hammad先生是U Technology Corporation的首席执行官，在照明审计和LED制造方面拥有超过10年的经验

More than $7 billion of fresh produce is wasted in Canadian grocery stores every year, primarily because stores prefer to showcase/sell produce that looks appealing to their customers. This not only creates a negative social and environmental connotation associated with food wastage, but it also represents a lost revenue stream for Canadian retailers and is a cost to taxpayers who pay large sums to dispose of the biomass. A recent study in our laboratory has shown that the shelf-life of vegetables can be increased by illuminating them with the correct intensity and wavelength of LED lights, instead of the fluorescent lamps that are currently found in grocery stores. Exposure to the correct LEDs can prevent wilting in leafy vegetables by regulating plant respiration thereby conserving leaf 'crunchiness'.**The LED light manufacturer, U Technology Corporation has identified postharvest storage of fruits and**vegetables as a potential market segment that they can capture. However, while U Technology Corporation currently manufactures LEDs for profile lighting in the domestic and commercial sectors but their lights are not geared towards vegetable storage. Moreover, although the effects of LED wavelengths on biomass preservation have been researched, few studies have been done to look into the impact of light intensity on fruits and vegetables. As a result, this collaborative research project was initiated between U Technology Corporation and McGill University to test different LED wavelengths at different intensities to study the versatility of LEDs in postharvest storage of spinach, kale and basil. The principal applicant, Dr. Lefsrud, has an established research program in the enhancement and control of plant growth environments with 26 publications in the area. He is an expert in plant production with different lighting systems (LED and other supplemental lighting), nutrient delivery systems and heating of controlled environments. Mr. Kam Hammad is the Chief Executive Officer of U Technology Corporation with over 10 years of experience in conducting lighting audits and LED fabrication.**