Advancing Onion Postharvest Handling Efficiency and Sustainability by Multimodal Quality Sensing, Disease Control, and Waste Stream Management

Onion is the third-largest fresh vegetable crop in the U.S. As a critical link between the farm and the consumer, postharvest handling plays a vital role in the onion industry. The current sorting and storage system is largely based on human inspection and unable to confront challenges like the growing demand for high-quality products from consumers and looming shortages in labor. For example, postharvest diseases, identified by stakeholders as the most serious threat to onion profitability, often cause 50% storage losses due to lack of detection tools and management strategies. As a result of diseases and disorders, discarded onions from the packinghouse or storage can lead to environmental pollution as well as increased disease pressure in the field. This Standard Research and Extension Project will enable an unprecedented leap in postharvest handling efficiency and sustainability through a systems approach and trans-disciplinary research and extension effort integrating three major themes: (i) improve the efficiency of online sorting by integrating X-ray and hyperspectral imaging technologies through a sensor fusion approach; (ii) reduce storage losses by developing gas sensing and tracing technologies, as well as evaluating the efficacy of postharvest disease management strategies; and iii) manage the onion waste stream by developing a high-rate anaerobic digestion system to convert discarded onions into energy. A socioeconomic analysis to assess the potential for technology adoption along with comprehensive outreach efforts ensures that new technologies will truly benefit stakeholders. This project addresses three focus areas of the SCRI and priorities established in stakeholder surveys.