Evaporative Coolers for the Postharvest Management of Fruits and Vegetables

Prof. Charles Oluwaseun Adetunji is a full Professor at the Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Sciences and the Director of Research and Innovation, Edo State University Uzairue (EDSU), Edo State, Nigeria. He formerly served as the Acting Director of Intellectual Property and Technology Transfer, Head of the Department of Microbiology, and Sub Dean of the Faculty of Science. Currently, he holds the positions of Chairman of the Grant Committee and Dean of the Faculty of Science at EDSU.Prof. Adetunji is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology in the UK. Additionally, he serves as a Visiting Professor and the Executive Director of the Center for Biotechnology at Precious Cornerstone University, Nigeria. His research centers on applying biological techniques and microbial bioprocesses to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and contribute to advancements in agriculture. Daniel Hefft is a food engineer from Germany. He is the team lead of the Product Research and Ingredients Team within the Consulting Technologies group at Campden BRI.He is also an Honorary Research Fellow of Chemical Engineering in the School of Chemical Engineering of the University of Birmingham.Prior to this appointment, Daniel lectured in Food Sciences, Dairy Technology/ Engineering, and Precision Agriculture at University Centre Reaseheath and served as the Academic Director of the Institute of Sustainability and Food Innovation. He got his undergraduate degree and food engineering qualification from Technische Hochschule Ostwestfalen-Lippe with specialisation in cereal technology. He has a MSc degree from the University of Reading and PhD in Chemical Engineering from the University Birmingham. He has been awarded Research Fellowships (2019) and a Research Affiliation in Nanoengineering (2020-2021) with the University of Birmingham. Further he has extensive years of experience in the food industry, having worked for a range of leading companies. His speciality are food process design and engineering. He was the founder and past CTO of Rheality Ltd (2020-2021), which utilises a novel and patented technology based on acoustic sensing and machine learning for live and in situ rheology measurements. He is also co-inventor of a new packaging system that extends shelf-life of fresh produce without the need of active cooling.Daniel is also the founder of the Engineering for Food and Drinks Special Interest group at the Institution of Agricultural Engineers and its current chair. Since 2018 he gained professional recognition as a Chartered Engineer with the Institution of Agricultural Engineers. He is further involved in the Association of German Food Technologists (GDL e.V.), a lifetime member of the Society of Dairy Technology, the International Society of Food Engineering, and the Institute of Physics (IOP). He is a Chartered Scientist with the IOP since 2021.His academic contributions include 60+ scientific publications in internationally recognised, high impact factor, peer-reviewed journals, and books. He has been awarded with the Distinguished Scientist award in Chemical Engineering by PCU in 2020.Further, there are two patents to his name relating to the invention of an in-line rheometry device and a novel composite packaging for primary and secondary application. Prof. (Eng) Duncan Onyango Mbuge is the Associate Dean, Faculty of Engineering and Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental and Biosystems Engineering, University of Nairobi. He is registered by the Engineers Board of Kenya (EBK) as a professional engineer, a corporate member of the Institution of Engineers of Kenya (IEK) and an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Lead Expert. He is currently conducting research and teaching in food and process engineering, materials science, low-cost machinery development, renewable energy, especially green hydrogen applications, biogas, development and promotion of solar thermal and PV systems for cooking, irrigation and lighting. Tilahun Seyoum Workneh is currently a Professor at the Agricultural Engineering Discipline, the University of KwaZulu-Natal. He holds a BSc in Agricultural Engineering, from the Department of Agricultural Engineering, Alemaya University (now Haramaya University), and an MEngSc in Agricultural and Food Engineering from the National University of Ireland, University College Dublin. He holds a PhD in Food Science from the Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology, The University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa, and a Certificate in Postharvest Technology (Agricultural Research Organisation, Volcani Centre, Rishon LeZion). He has 35 years of experience in teaching, research, and community engagement. His research interests include: food processing and preservation, value addition to foods, heat and mass transfer in indigenous foods, hybrid drying of indigenous foods, postharvest processing of fruit and vegetables, functional ingredient production, food quality and food safety.

• THEME 1: Fruit, Vegetables and Shelf Life and Health 1. Key contributors to postharvest losses and the scale of the problem 2. Geographical and climatic limitations for the implementation of evaporative coolers for the storage of postharvest produce 3. Influence of Evaporative coolant structure on the post-harvest attributes of Climacteric fruits 4. Influence of Evaporative coolant structure on post-harvest attributes on non-climacteric fruits 5. Effect of Evaporative coolant structure towards the reduction of ripening stages in fruits and vegetable 6. Advances in Evaporative Cooling Applications in Fruit and Vegetables Short Term Cooling at Postharvest Stage7. Health benefits such as nutraceutical and functional benefits derived from fruits and vegetable stored using Evaporative coolant structure 8. Application of edible coatings in Porous Evaporative Cooling 9. Edible coating materials and health implications after storage in evaporative coolant structure 10. Post-harvest management of Aflatoxin in Fruits and vegetables 11. Synergetic effect of edible coatings from natural materials on the shelf-life extension of fruits and vegetables 12. Effect of Evaporative coolant structure on chemical, bio-chemical and physiological changes of fruits and vegetables 13. Effect of Evaporative coolant structure on the sensory attributes and consumers acceptability of fruits and vegetables 14. Effect of Evaporative coolant structure in reducing spoilage Microorganisms 15. Extensive farmers’ awareness on edible coatings and other dissemination measures; and public awareness and other dissemination measures16. The Effect of Evaporative coolant structure on Ornamental Plants 17. The Effect of Evaporative coolant structure on Tropical and Subtropical Fruit and Nuts18. Effect of Evaporative coolant structure as a storage technique for preservation of fresh produce/horticulture for Human Health 19. Effect of Evaporative coolant structure for Roots and Tubers 20. Case study on a community relying on evaporative cooling