Intra-ACP Agricultural Policy Programme supports Capacity building of Caribbean and Pacific Scientist

Horticulture (plant) science’s importance for the future of agriculture, food, nutrition, income and prosperity is undeniable in the context of attaining food and nutrition security.  Topical issues covered under the horticulture’s umbrella include enhancing the production of cereals, fruits, vegetables and improvements in plant breeding, research on impact of climate change, optimizing indigenous generic resources, managing pest and diseases and improving and reducing postharvest losses and handling.

The first International Horticulture Congress was held one hundred fifty years ago in Brussels and is marking its 29^th anniversary in August 2014 in Brisbane, Australia. Over 4,000 abstracts have been dedicated to the event, thus reflecting the interest generated and the opportunities to turn the tide in favor of safeguarding the future of the horticulture/plant science. 

The extensive programme of the International Horticulture Congress will include 43 symposia with leading experts speakers on topics such as horticulture in relation to food security, food safety, the environment and health.

CTA, under the Intra-ACP Agricultural Policy Programme, will sponsor the participation of young professionals from the Caribbean and the Pacific in both the specialized pre-congress short course training programme on postharvest covering harvesting, packing shed, storage technology and distribution including ICT use, and the ICH2014. This is made possible under the component 3 of the Intra-ACP Agricultural Policy Programme “Improved dissemination and adoption of applied research and appropriate, Science and Technology”. The programme’s outline is as follows:

IHC2014 Pre-Congress Training

University of Queensland Postharvest Horticulture Short Course

13-15 August, 2014

Mapleton Conference Centre, Queensland

Course Plan

Wednesday 13 August, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM: Lectures (Welcome and Introduction, Modules 1-6, General Discussion session).

Thursday 14 August, 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM: Lectures (Modules 7-8), Field trip to a local packhouse, Laboratory activity at the Maroochy Research Facility, Nambour.

Friday 15 August, 5:00 AM – 9:00 PM: Field trip to Brisbane Markets and other horticulture chain enterprises in south-east Queensland, General wrap up session, Short course dinner.

Lecture content

Module 1: Harvesting (Roberto Marques, NSW DPI)

• •Topics to include: product maturity, harvest time, harvesting methods.

Module 2: Packing shed (Muhammad Amin, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad; UAF)

• •Topics to include: product arrival, treatments, grading, packing, palletising, cooling.

Module 3: Storage technology (Aman Malik, UAF and Dan Sole, QDAFF)

• •Topics include: temperature and cooling techniques, relative humidity, air movement and pressure (including forced-air cooling), atmosphere composition.

Module 4: Distribution (Terry Campbell, QDAFF)

• •Topics to include: transportation – air, sea, road, rail, heat sources in a refrigerated container, unitisation, stabilisation, loading patterns, modified atmospheres.

Module 5: Features of harvested produce (Andrew Macnish, QDAFF)

• •Topics: plant structure, changes after harvest, respiration, ethylene, ripening, water loss.

Module 6: Product quality (Steven Underhill, University of the Sunshine Coast, QAFFI)

• •Topics to include: quality standards, factors contributing to quality loss.

Module 7: Plant pathology and food safety (Tony Cooke, QDAFF)

• •Topics to include: factors influencing postharvest pathology, common postharvest diseases, foodborne illness, disease/microbe control strategies.

Module 8: Horticulture value chains (Terry Campbell, QDAFF)

• •Topics to include: Supply chains vs value chains, collaboration, relationships, VCA.

Laboratory activity

Show effects of temperature, ethylene and handling (impact damage) on produce quality, demonstrate common postharvest techniques used to assess produce quality (e.g. total soluble solids, acidity, firmness, colour, ethylene and CO₂ production, disease and defect rating systems). Ian Wells (QDAFF) to assist in preparation and delivery along with lecturers.

Field trips

Visit vegetable farm (e.g. Mulgowie Farms/Rugby Farm), packing shed operation (e.g. Natures Fruit), packaging manufacturer (e.g. Amcor), distribution centre and retail store (e.g. Coles/Woolworths), wholesale markets (e.g. Brisbane Markets).

* For more details about the selection procedure for the CTA sponsored delegates, date, duration and venue of the event please consult: http://bit.ly/1mPi8Yu