NIR portable device use in a logistic platform : productivity and performance analysis

Today the NIR spectroscopy is one of the most interesting technology for the not destructive evaluation of vegetables and fruit. From several years the specifically literature shows the strength of this principal but are not many the researches which evaluate the commercial devices from the productivity and performance point of view. Aim of the present research is the evaluation of a commercial device used in a logistic platform for vegetables and fruit distribution: the analysis is done making particularly attention to the performance aspects and the productivity during the acceptance phase. The research, made during the 2003, considers different fruits and vegetables types: apples, peers, peaches, plums, grapes, kiwi, strawberries and tomatoes. For every product it was analysed different lots, making both destructive test, made during the usually acceptance phase, and the not destructive ones assuming like references the limits used in the protocol of the logistic platform. The result demonstrates that the reliability of the device is similar of that obtained with the traditional destructive method, but in a shorter time and without breaking any product.