Efficient management of the water resource in the fresh-cut industry:
Current status and perspectives
Among the different food industries, fresh-cut produce manufacturing is one of the major waterintensive,
due to the huge consumption of potable water to perform washing operations required to
guarantee the safety and quality of the product. Reducing the water footprint of washing is thus a
challenge for fresh-cut industries and food researchers. This review paper examines the current status of
the water resource management in the fresh-cut industry and critically describes a comprehensive
approach to the improvement of the water use efficiency by implementing strategies of water recirculation,
reuse and recycling. In particular, advantages and limitations of chlorine and chlorine-free disinfectants
to reduce water turnover in washing tanks were considered. In addition, particular attention
was focussed on innovative technological solutions, based on either physical or chemical stresses, which
could be exploited individually or in combination to treat wastewater deriving from fresh-cut washing
and allow its recycling within the processing plant.