{"id":2596,"date":"2020-02-09T15:15:33","date_gmt":"2020-02-09T19:15:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cwcallah\/?p=2596"},"modified":"2024-12-16T14:48:49","modified_gmt":"2024-12-16T18:48:49","slug":"planning-an-efficient-and-safe-wash-pack-area","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.uvm.edu\/cwcallah\/2020\/02\/09\/planning-an-efficient-and-safe-wash-pack-area\/","title":{"rendered":"Planning an Efficient and Safe Wash\/Pack Area"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Chris Callahan, Hans Estrin, and Andy Chamberlin<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reading not your thing?<\/em> We have a free, 8-Part webinar video series that goes into depth on all of the following topics discussed below.<\/em>
Project Planning for Postharvest Efficiency, Profitability & Food Safety <\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Summary<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Efficiency and food safety are integral parts of running a profitable and\nviable farm, producing high-quality produce, and retaining valuable employees.\nThis integration should start with a vision in the planning stage of all\npostharvest projects.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

Planning with efficiency and safety in mind ensures that growers \u201cown\u201d\ntheir systems and spend time and attention where it counts. This will help\ncreate systems and infrastructure that support business goals, markets, and\nproduction style. This ownership and planning are key to implementation\nsuccess.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Focus areas of efficiency and food safety include flow, buildings,\ninfrastructure, equipment, tools, and produce safety planning. Each of these\ntopics will be explored below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Flow<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Following a key concept of \u201clean farming<\/a>,\u201d it is helpful to think about how things will move through your wash\/pack area.  We like to think about it in terms of how people, product, water, and waste flow through your space. Ideally, flow is in one direction to avoid backtracking (wasted steps) and potential cross contamination (clean produce intersecting that coming in from the field.) We have seen some creative solutions using U-flow to achieve the same goal in tighter quarters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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These two schematic layouts provide very generic samples of wash\/pack flow arrangements. Whether you are able to achieve single-pass, straight-through flow, a U-turn setup, or even a T-setup, the principles remain: save steps, prevent cross-contamination, and get the product to storage temperature as quickly as possible.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Flow of People<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

How do you and others move into and through the wash and pack area?  If it is an enclosed building, do you have enough doors to allow efficient movement in and out of the space?  Can you easily carry heavier totes of vegetables in and out? If you\u2019re large enough to be moving vegetables with pallet bins, you may want a larger sliding or overhead door.  If you are not in an enclosed space, you may still want to think about how foot traffic is prevented where you don\u2019t want people entering or leaving the space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Large overhead doors are helpful for moving large carts and pallets of bins, or even for moving single bins by hand with ease. Separate, dedicated doors for people to move through can be helpful for separating the flow of people and product when needed.<\/em> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Flow of Product<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It can be helpful to zoom out and think about the flow of product from field to table or field to market. Looking at your farm using Google Maps<\/a> can be helpful to think about locations of fields and wash\/pack areas relative to each other.  The routes between them also become clearer when zoomed out.  Are you using the best route to move produce from the field to the wash\/pack area? Are there any sources of contamination between the field and wash\/pack like a compost pile or livestock area that should be avoided? Are you using the best bin, tote, or container<\/a> for the produce and your operation?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once produce is in the wash\/pack it is usually best to work\ntoward a directional flow from field to market in one direction.  Avoid\nbacktracking. Once produce is washed, keep it moving in the direction toward a\ncooler or market and avoid retracing steps with clean produce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Establishing and maintaining a cold chain is important for\npreserving product quality. By reducing product temperature to appropriate\nstorage temperature quickly, you reduce respiration and help maintain peak\nharvest quality.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Flow of Water<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Water is typically used to wash vegetables, harvest bins, market bins, equipment, and tools. Do you have a reliable source of safe water?  Have you considered hanging hoses to keep them off the ground? Once you are done with that water, where does it go?  Intentional drainage <\/a>helps keep water moving in the right direction (away from clean produce<\/a>) and keeps the floor clear of standing water which can be a hazard. A good floor<\/a> can also help with this. Similar to the way we want to avoid bringing clean produce back in the direction of the field, we also want draining wash water to head away from the place where we are using it to clean produce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In-floor drains and relatively smooth, pitched concrete floors make it easier to wash down at the end of the day.<\/em> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Flow of Waste<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Washing and trimming produce can result in some residue that should be kept separate from produce for market. Seconds, culls, tops, etc. should be kept in a designated container and emptied in the compost pile, livestock feed trough or other \u201cwaste\u201d stream daily. Compost piles should be located away from wash\/pack areas. Accumulated produce waste can attract wildlife which can be a produce safety hazard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buildings & Infrastructure<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You can wash produce just about anywhere, and we\u2019ve seen some pretty creative, simple, and inexpensive setups. But, a little shade cover goes a long way and can be provided with a simple pop-up tent. A step up from that is a more permanent pole shed. Sometimes referred to as \u201cfour sticks and lid\u201d, this can provide three seasons of comfortable space to work in. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This robust, three-season wash\/pack shed provides shade and cover from rain leading to a comfortable and organized space to handle produce headed to market.<\/em> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

We’ve been compiling case studies that document individual grower decisions about wash\/pack building, equipment and systems. You can find our growing list on our post harvest case study page<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This is a sampling of the post harvest case studies<\/a> available as of early 2023. We’re grateful to these growers for opening up their packsheds and their lives to us so we could try to capture their decision making processes. They’ve shared a lot of lessons learned so you can learn them before taking on your project. Case studies are generally available in web, PDF, and video formats. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

If you\u2019re planning on winter production or washing and packing winter storage crops, you\u2019re probably going to want an enclosed space with a little heat.  An insulated, heated space can be a life changer, although it does require an investment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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An insulated, heated space with wash-down ready walls helps make for a comfortable, efficient and safe winter wash\/pack setup.<\/em> <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Once you are working in an enclosed space, you\u2019ll want to think about lighting<\/a> so you can work effectively.

Cold and warm storage spaces<\/a> are also something most farms find useful.  There are many options for building insulated walls<\/a> that also keep rodents out<\/a>. Many farms have found that using a CoolBot\u2122 controlled air conditioner<\/a> for cooling their spaces is a low-cost way of starting out with refrigeration. Some growers in northern climates have had good luck using an outside air exchange cooling system<\/a> which brings cold, winter air in and exhausts warmer inside air using a thermostat controlled fan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you need to get a sense for the cooling or heating load of a storage room, you can use our online heating and cooling load calculator<\/a> (we also have one for high tunnels and greenhouses<\/a>). Freeze protection of cold storage and heating of warm rooms<\/a> is also a common need which can be addressed with a small space heater on a thermostat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Equipment<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Washing equipment can be as simple as a sink or tub<\/a>. Lots of greens growers make use of bubblers<\/a> and greens spinners<\/a>.  Systems can also be more complex, taking the form of conveyor wash lines<\/a> and root washing <\/a>lines. Decisions about specific equipment will depend greatly on the scale of your farm operation, your market, your labor, and the crops you are handling and storing. We have started to compile a variety of case studies<\/a> showing how farms of different scales and complexity have made their decisions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is important to make sure the equipment you are using to\nwash produce is washable itself.  This is known as hygienic design, and we\nhave some resources<\/a> that\ncan help you apply this principle to your farm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tools<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There are a wide variety of tools that can make the washing and\npacking of produce easier and more efficient.  We\u2019ve mentioned the wide\narray of bins, totes, and containers<\/a> that\nare available.  Using different containers (or different colors) for\nharvest, storage, and market can help improve handling and safety. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tools should be easily cleaned and sanitized<\/a> for the same reasons as equipment. Having a dedicated place for storing tools when not in use can help keep things clean and organized.  A magnetic knife strip, for example, is a common favorite. Hose reels<\/a> are also a very popular tool for keeping hoses handy, but out of the way when not in use.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more information about cleaning and sanitizing, including a summary of cleaning tools<\/a> check out our SCRUB Project Page<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Budget<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

We recently polled the Vermont Vegetable and Berry Growers Association members to see what recent wash-pack projects had cost. Below is a summary of wash-pack and cooler costs as of 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n