Kontext

Thanks to its organoleptic quality, the Fuji apple is one of the varieties most sought after and accepted by consumers. Despite the agronomic difficulties associated with cultivating this variety, apple producers consider it to be a high-profit product, if minimum production levels are achieved. These minimum levels are not achieved in many years because there is a high percentage of fruit that cannot be sold due to a number of skin defects. One of these defects is cracking. Cracking occurs slightly before the harvest and can individually or jointly affect the stalk area, the calyx or the flesh of the apple. In just a few hours, a little cracking in any of these areas of the fruit can quickly result in the cleaving of the pulp, which often leads to the complete or partial rotting of the fruit, making its sale impossible. Cracking frequently affects 10 to 20% of total production and in some years as much as 50%, with the resulting economic losses. There are numerous causes that trigger this condition, although there is one that is always present: rain or high relative humidity a few days before the fruit harvest.
To solve this problem, the application of solutions cited in the literature on this subject that have proven to be somewhat effective in other countries or areas is proposed.