Correction factor determination in leafy vegetable crops commercialized in Brasilia, Brazil

Brazil has high indexes of food waste, which affects regional economy and increases social problems. Inadequate planning of food processing, from postharvest to consumption, is one of the reasons of loss. Vegetable crops are live organisms and their durability is affected by the processes of subdivision and cooking. To reduce losses, the determination of the Correction Factor is essential in order to evaluate the losses and the factors which interfere on these losses. This work consists on determining the Correction Factor of the following vegetable crops: Crisphead Lettuce, Unheaded Lettuce, Lettuce, Purple Leafs, Chard, Endive, Watercress, Common Chicory, Borecole Green Collard, Escarole, Spinach, Mustard, Cabbage, Red Cabbage and Rocket Crop. Three sale units of each vegetable crop were acquired at the CEASA in Brasília (Federal District, Brazil), from three different suppliers, with four replicates, a total of 36 samples of each vegetable crop. Aiming to detect the influence of the gathering month on the Partial Correction Factor (CF 1) and Final Correction Factor (CF 2) analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey test were carried out. In all tests a level of 5% of statistical significance was considered. The results showed that for the majority of the vegetables, harvest does not influence loss. However for chard, the lower CF occurred at harvest. On the other hand for cabbage, the lower CF occurred at harvest. This way for the majority of the vegetables, the losses evaluated by the CF are more related to handling procedures and conservation. For cabbage, it is recommended not to include it on meals in the harvest period because the vegetable is more expensive and losses are higher. Therefore, for vegetables that are influenced by harvest, it is recommended to observe the best period for menu planning.

waste; harvest; losses