3.1. FRUIT PRODUCTION
Fruit production is increasing dramatically worldwide. According to the FAO, the total world fruit production in 2008 was 572.4 million tons, and the number climbed to 609.2 million tons in 2010 (FAO 2010). Among these fruits, thirty percent of which were tropical fruits, with water melon occupied of 59.2%, mongo and guavas of 20.5% and pineapple of 11.4% (Rawson et al. 2011).
Despite the increasing food production at the global level, about one-third of the food produced in the world is lost or wasted (Prusky 2011), among which, post-harvest stage losses and marketing stage losses are major losses.
3.2. POST-HARVEST LOSS OF FRUITS