**2.2 Storage**

The need for storage of agricultural produce is necessitated by seasonal changes, disasters, economic meltdown, climate change, price fluctuations, terrorism and tribal conflict. Tropical fruits are stored at a higher temperature than in the temperate region. The higher temperature increases metabolism, activities, respiratory rate, loss of moisture content and an increased rate of ripening; these reduce the shelf life of tropical fruits more rapidly. It was estimated that 25–70 per cent of the fresh fruit produced is lost after harvest [26]. Peppers stored above 7.5°C suffer water loss and shriveling. Storage below 7.5°C is best for a maximum shelf life of 3−5 weeks. Pepper dried to safe moisture content, packed tightly in sacks, can be stored in non-refrigerated warehouses for up to 6 months. Storage under low temperature reduces loss of red color and slow down insect activities. Rapid precooling of harvested pepper is essential in reducing marketing losses, and this can be done by forced air cooling, hydro cooling or vacuum cooling. If hydro cooling is used, care should be taken to prevent the development of decay. The moisture content of pepper should be kept low (10–15%) to prevent mold growth. Relative humidity of 60–70% is too higher. If the relative humidity is too low (below 10%), pods may be too brittle that they may shatter during handling, resulting in losses and the release of dust, which irritates the skin and respiratory system [54]. Using polyethene bags for dried pepper allowed for better storage and reduced dust. Packaging ensures the pod maintains a constant moisture content during storage until the grinding time. Baryeh studied the storage condition and storage life of okra and pepper in isolated concrete and heat storage unit in form of tubes and slabs. Solar heated air and the air blown around a hot internal combustion engine were passed through the tubes and slabs. The effectiveness of heat storage increased with increasing food storage length. It was demonstrated that up to 6.0 kj and 5.75 kj of heat energy could be used to store products in tropical semi-argillous mud and concrete over a 5-hr period. In a further study, concrete and mud tubes were used to store pepper, which was kept for one year without severe deterioration. The moisture content remains at the initial value of 10%, which was too low to allow germination and fungal growth [55]. Pepper can also be preserved effectively in the evaporative coolant structure for two weeks without problems associated with cold storage [56]. The objective of storage after harvest is to control the rate of deterioration and ripening, and to maintain its quality. The following characteristics

### *Postharvest Handling Methods, Processes and Practices for Pepper DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.106592*

are used as indices to measure the quality of pepper fruit; size, color, shape, firmness, freedom from defects, cracks, decay, sunburn, infection, physiological disorder and pathological disorder. Relative humidity, the control of relative humidity in a postharvest environment, is often as important as temperature control. In some situations, the effect of the two factors is difficult to separate because of the capacity of air to hold moisture, which varies with temperature. Relative humidity depends on the type of storage and purpose [54]. Green pepper stores best at 5–10°C for 3–4 weeks [57]. Wills also found that, in general, there is an inverse relationship between respiration rate and storage life so that produce with low respiration rate generally keep longer. It suggests that respiration could be slowed by limiting the oxygen or raising carbon dioxide concentration in the storage atmosphere. The reduction in the concentration of O2 is necessary to achieve a dependent on the storage temperature. As the temperature lowers, the required concentration of O2 is also reduced. For good quality, colored peppers should have 50% colouration [4].

## **2.3 Preservation techniques**

The preservation of pepper helps in the following ways: To increase the economic value of the product by transforming it from one form to another, to remove inedible parts of produce, to improve taste, to inactivate enzymes, to make packaging easier, to reduce the cost of transportation, to make food available where it is not produced, to increase profit and to Control shortage.
