Fruit Bagging for Organic and Quality Fruit Production

Fruit bagging is a cultivation technique which provides physical protection of fruit from early stages of fruit development to harvest. Fruit bagging can potentially increase farmers income through improved fruit quality. The technique allows for the production of organic fruits by utilizing environmentally friendly measures, thus optimizing human health through reduced exposure to pesticide residues. Fruit bagging originated in the early 20th century in Japan. The technique was first being applied to the cultivation of pears and grapes, and then extended to varieties of apple. Fruit bagging was quickly applied to fruit production in Japan, Korea and China in the early 70’s because of the significant improvement of quality in bagged fruits, and now remains a standard practice for quality fruit production in these countries. Fruit bagging continues to develop as new materials and technology become available. This presentation is designed to provide information for the promotion of the technology in North America; and will discuss fruit bagging techniques including: 1) effect of fruit bagging, 2) selection of different bags, 3)suitable bagging time, 4) bagging methods and 5) bag removal methodology and timing.