Junyu Zhao

Doctor of Philosophy
Study Completed: 2017
College of Health

Citation

Thesis Title
Development of Mathematical Model for 'Hayward' Kiwifruit Softening in the Supply Chain

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Fruit loss is a major concern to the kiwifruit industry as it incurs a high cost to monitor and remove overly soft or rotten fruit to meet export standards. Kiwifruit is often exposed to various temperature scenarios due to varying packhouse cooling practices, and temperature control is difficult to maintain throughout the supply chain. Mr Zhao's research focused on understanding the influence of time-temperature on the fruit's subsequent storage performance. He found that by understanding the mechanism of kiwifruit softening and the effect of temperature and cooling rate on kiwifruit quality, a predictive model on the fruit quality can be developed. Mr Zhao's research findings demonstrate the challenge of predictively modelling kiwifruit quality in the supply chain and advance the development of a predictive model for measuring kiwifruit quality during storage given time-temperature information.

Supervisors
Professor Andrew East
Professor John Bronlund