An economic analysis of harvest timing to manage the physiological storage disorder firm flesh browning in ‘Empire’ apples

•‘Empire’ apples were harvested at weekly intervals for three weeks.•Flesh browning incidence was highest in late harvested fruit.•Browning incidence was increased by 1-MCP and storage at 2 °C compared with 0.5 °C.•Early harvests had smaller and less red colored fruit but less browning.•Net profits vary depending on length of storage.

Firm flesh browning of ‘Empire’ apple (Malus sylvestris (L.) Mill var. domestica Borkh.) fruit is a major cause of revenue loss for growers and storage operators. In this study, the economic impact of harvest date on revenue based on percentage pack-out (fruit size/weight and red coloration) and disorder incidence has been investigated using a budgeting model. Fruit were harvested from a commercial orchard weekly for three weeks; H1 (one week before normal harvest), H2 (normal harvest), and H3 (one week after normal harvest). Fruit samples were either untreated or treated with 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) and stored under controlled atmosphere (CA) conditions (2 kPa O2; 2 kPa CO2) at 0.5 °C and 2 °C. Field bins of fruit were used to assess pack-out percentages. Flesh browning was low at H1 and unaffected by 1-MCP treatment, whereas incidence was highest in fruit from H3, and especially in 1-MCP treated fruit stored at 2 °C. The enterprise budget model shows that net profits for a one hectare high density planting vary slightly between fresh-marketed fruit in the fall, and for fruit stored after nine months in CA storage, both with and without 1-MCP treatment. Net profits from one hectare are higher for H3 when fruit are marketed in the fall, in comparison to the normal harvest (H2), but at harvest, pack-out was substantially lower for fruit from H1. Fruit quality and pack-out percentages after storage depended not only on the harvest date but also on storage temperature and 1-MCP treatment. Therefore, there is an economic tradeoff between harvest date, occurrence of flesh browning, and likely net profits to producers of ‘Empire’ apples.