Case: Extending shelf life of eggplants during transport to Eastern Europe

Customer demand

An eggplant grower approached us with a concrete problem: during transport to Eastern Europe (including Moldova), ethylene levels in the cargo were rising. This had a negative impact on the quality and shelf life of the eggplants upon arrival.

The client was looking for:

• Understanding possible solutions to reduce ethylene
• A practical application within their existing logistics process
• A price indication to assess feasibility

The situation

The eggplants were:

• Packed loose in cardboard boxes (25 pieces / 5 kg)
• Stacked on euro pallets (±25 packages per shipment)
• Transported as part of mixed loads with other vegetables and exotics

Important detail: the products were not transported in a dedicated container, but in a mixed cargo. This greatly affects the effectiveness of ethylene solutions.

The challenge

Ethylene is a natural aging gas that accelerates the aging of vegetables. In an enclosed environment, this can add up quickly, especially with longer transportation times.

The complexity in this case was in:

• The mixed load (not just eggplants)
• Unknown and variable transport time
• Limited control over the entire container environment

Our analysis

Based on the situation, we assessed two scenarios:

1. Ethylene absorbers in boxes
This solution works well in a controlled, sealed environment.
But: in a container of mixed products, the bags cannot purify all the air.

2. Transport filters in the container
This approach is effective for treating the entire airflow in a container.
Prerequisite: the container must consist entirely or mostly of the same product group.

Our advice

Since the client uses mixed transports, we recommended an alternative:

• Use of Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP) bags.
• In combination with ethylene absorbers of 1.7g or 2.5g per pack

This combination:

• Creates a controlled microclimate per box
• Reduces the influence of external ethylene sources
• Is effective within a mixed cargo

In addition, we advised looking at specialized MAP solutions for eggplant from suppliers such as Stepac and Aypek.

Results & added value

With this approach, the customer gets:

• Better control over product quality during transport
• Less dependence on external factors in the container
• A scalable solution without adjusting the logistics chain

Conclusion

This case shows that the right solution depends not only on the product, but especially on the logistical context. By thinking along with the entire process, we were able to offer a practical and effective alternative that is immediately applicable.