Apparatus for controlling the ripening of fresh produce

摘要

An apparatus is provided for controlling the ripening of produce. The apparatus includes a chamber having a ceiling, a floor and a plurality of walls. Positioned in the chamber is a support and position structure to support two rows of palletized produce and to space the palletized produce away from the walls to define a fluid circulation space around the palletized produce. The rows of palletized produce are spaced apart to define an interstitial volume therebetween. Each row of palletized produce includes at least an upper and a lower tier with a vertical spacing therebetween. A flexible sealing strip is affixed to the support and position structure to generally seal the vertical spacing between the tiers from the fluid circulation space. A fluid control mechanism is provided to exhaust fluid from the interstitial volume and to introduce a controlled fluid into the fluid circulation space to create a pressure differential between the interstitial volume and the circulation space to thereby force the controlled fluid to flow generally uniformly through the palletized produce.