A P R I L 2 0 1 8 20 POTATO GROWER Turning Back The Clock A Look Back 25 Years Ago at Excerpts from The April 1993 Issue of The Valley Potato Grower Magazine Foam Padding May Help Reduce Bruise Research specialists in Maine are studying a new foam padding which appears may reduce bruising of potatoes during harvest, trans- portation, processing and packag- ing. Funded in part by a grant thru the National Anti-Bruise Committee and Potato Marketing Improvement Program, a product called “NoBruze” marketed by New England Foam Product Company, Inc., of Pelham Manor, New York, is being studied for bruise effective- ness. Foam products which are used to line pieces of equipment are not a new concept, but the NoBruze prod- uct seems to be a one-of-a-kind. What makes this product different, explains Dr. Neil Hallee, Agricul- tural Engineer with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, is that it is a closed cell PVC foam liner while other foam materials have open cells. “Being closed cell means that it will not absorb water,” Hallee said. “This material that the NoBruze padding is made from the closed cell PVC material that is used to make swim- ming pool floats, lobster buoys, and fishing nets. It has many water type applications and has a good life in the water.’ “That’s one of the factors that attracted us to it,” said Hallee, who is a member of the National Anti- Bruise committee. What this means to potatoes is that because moisture cannot get into it, there is less chance for fungus, bac- teria or disease to build as they need moisture to develop. There may be potential for moisture to get in from underneath the mate- rial, Hallee said, but in their tests, the foam padding was glued to the steel. “As long as the gluing is done properly, it would prevent moisture from getting in underneath it,” he added. The PVC foam liner sheets function as protective padding for the crops that come in contact with it during harvesting, processing, and packag- ing. The sheets prevent the bruising of the crops because of their high shock absorption ability and high tensile strength. Preliminary studies show the system reduces the crop bruising by as much as 30 percent, according to William Boyle, New England Foam Products President. “The foam liners can withstand temperatures below -20oF and up to 220oF and have pro- tective skins to resist weathering,” he added. The NoBruze Protective Padding System was conceived and designed to reduce losses due to bruising in the harvesting and transportation of potatoes. Potato bruising is an ongoing prob- lem for the potato industry. Grower losses nationwide are in excess of 125 million annually or a minimum