Determining changes in stored peas by use of a reference element

Abstract does not appear. First page follows.

Introduction

The fresh pea crop is of considerable economic importance in California. As most of it is shipped to distant markets, there is danger of the product’s being subject to conditions deleterious to edible quality. To a certain extent the continued success of the industry depends upon placing a high-quality commodity on the table of the consumer. In an effort to help in guiding commercial practices in this direction, studies have been made on the fundamental changes occurring in the peas and pods after harvest.

As a rule the results of analyses presented by most investigators studying changes in stored material have been expressed as percentages of dry matter. When this method of expression is used, it is difficult to secure a true picture of the absolute changes that are taking place because the variables being studied, such as sugars and starches, are compared with another variable—total dry matter. Kertesz⁽⁵⁾5 has recently pointed out some of the errors commonly occurring in the accumulation and presentation of data on stored material.

In these studies the authors have been interested in determining the absolute changes occurring in both pods and peas in storage and the transfer of material from one to the other.