• Cherries
    Greener stems for longer
    A healthy, fresh stem is the key to achieving better tasting longer lasting cherries.
  • Cherries
    Extending optimal cherry
    condition for longer
    RYPEN moderates the ethylene emitted by the stems, preventing uncontrolled signalling to the cherries that would otherwise respire and ripen too quickly.
  • Cherries
    Protecting Cherries at
    every step of the journey
    From the grower to the consumer, RYPEN products offer protection throughout the supply-chain.

  • Case liner

    A multi-functional case liner with RYPEN technology embedded directly into the polymer to deliver comprehensive ethylene protection for both storage and transit applications.

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  • Leaf

    The solution for a wide range of produce packed in cases, or in bags. Providing simple-to-use and highly-effective ethylene moderation in storage and during transit.

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It was previously thought that Cherries didn’t even emit ethylene, however recent scientific research has proven that they do. In-fact cherries emit ethylene from the pedicel / stems which are then able to react with the receptors in the fruit, initiating and stimulating the ripening process. This induces a wide array of physiological responses even at very low concentrations, especially on the firmness of the fruit and reducing shelf-life.

 

Research as well as our commercial trials have shown that even low ethylene levels detrimentally effect the quality of sweet cherry and the pedicel. This risk is further enhanced when sweet cherry is packed in MAP bags, with temperatures regularly increasing above set limits for the bag design. Therefore, rather than maintaining the desired firmness of the cherries, the accumulated ethylene within MAP induces premature softening (IntechOpen- Open Science Open Minds).

 

The trapped ethylene in containers or MAP bags can exacerbate the natural senescence processes, making the cherries more prone to physiological disorders and postharvest decay, so the combination of MAP and RYPEN technology optimises the benefits of the MAP packaging.​

  • Albeit classified as a non-climacteric fruit, ethylene is clearly involved in sweet cherry ripening since the increase of this hormone is parallel to fruit softening, colour development and accumulation of oxidative stress markers. (Giné-Bordonaba et al., 2017)

    Jordi Giné-Bordonaba, Gemma Echeverria, Dolors Ubach, Ingrid Aguiló-Aguayo, M. Luisa López, Christian Larrigaudière,
    Biochemical and physiological changes during fruit development and ripening of two sweet cherry varieties with different levels of cracking tolerance, Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, Volume 111, 2017, Pages 216-225,
Cherries (Lapin variety) were transited (40 days) from Chile to China. At arrival RYPEN protected cherries remained firmer than the control group, with less stem loss and lower incidence of quality defects – resulting in less deductions and better pricing for the grower.
  • 45% reduction in defects
  • Reduction in stem browning
  • Increased fruit firmness

Cherries are primarily consumed in the Northern Hemisphere markets, with major volume producers and exporters in climatically suited regions such as Türkiye, USA, Chile and Spain. The US and EU production seasons run May to August, while the world’s largest producer Chile (+350k tonnes) exports the majority of its fruit from November through February for the Chinese New Year where gifting red fruit is a symbol of good luck, with luxury positioning.

Key varieties of cherries include Sweetheart, Regina, Bing, Rainier, Lapins and Kordia. Other major export markets include Russia, South Korea, and Japan, with growing demand in South East Asia. The short shelf-life of cherries demands efficient logistics, cold chain maintenance and cutting-edge technology to protect fruit from spoiling. Climate change, water access and labour shortages remain significant industry challenges.

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