At Smart Fog, we offer non-wetting humidification solutions and disinfection equipment that maximizes produce shelf life, minimizes disease and maintains quality of post-harvest, pre-packaging and packaged produce. Using our fully-automated ES100 System, our customers have the ability to precisely maintain up to 99% humidity, conserve energy and water, and eliminate disease, insects, mold and dust. Our non-wetting food safety solution forces water into the air and produces fog that is so fine, it can penetrate packaging while not damaging the produce. Smart Fog offers wall-mounted direct room injection systems, mobile and fog tunnel formats that can be mounted over existing conveyer systems.
Smart Fog primarily offers its services for businesses, but they also have some tips for the consumer on how to keep this summer’s produce fresh at home.
#1 – Separate fruits and veggies into different refrigerator drawers to make them last longer. As many fruits ripen (watermelon and unripe bananas are the exception here), they produce a gas called Ethylene that many vegetables are sensitive to, causing them to spoil. By separating the two, you can make your produce last longer and save money. You can also, however, use this to ripen certain produce quicker than they would naturally, such as that hard avocado you were hoping to use on tomorrow’s sandwich. To see where in your kitchen each piece of produce should be stored, check out this handy guide from popular weight-loss site Sparkpeople.
#2 – Store produce in the freezer that you don’t plan on using for a while. Most fruit and veggies can be stored in the fridge without a significant loss of flavor or nutritional value. The produce should be ripe already when frozen, and stored in an airtight container. Avoid freezing any kind of leafy greens like lettuce, spinach or arugula.
#3 – Buy in-season local produce when possible. Now is the perfect time for in-season fruits like berries, melons, kiwi, grapes and mango, as well as vegetables like broccoli, squash, lettuce, corn and eggplant. If you buy produce at a local farmer’s market, get there early to get the produce before it sits in the sun for too long. Stay away from packaged produce so that you can avoid food that is bruised or moldy.
#4 – Rinse your produce no matter what. Even if you buy organic produce, it may be exposed to contaminants during the transport or storage process. Make sure to wash your produce just before eating, as the extra moisture can be damaging to the produce if you wash and then store it.
Fresh produce is one of the best parts about summer and Smart Fog wants to make sure that you get the most out of it. For more information on Smart Fog and the American-made products they offer, please visit https://www.smartfog.com
