In 2002, over $2.3 billion worth of frozen French fried potatoes were produced in the United States, representing roughly one quarter of total sub-sector economic output . Frozen concentrated orange juice represents the next most significant product of this sub-sector with $1.5 billion in product shipments in 2002. The three Pacific Coast states of California, Oregon, and Washington accounted for roughly 60% of the employment and one half of the establishments in the frozen fruit, juice, and vegetable manufacturing sub-sector in 2002 . Oregon and Washington are major producers of frozen fruits while California produces a wide range both frozen fruits and frozen vegetables . Idaho, the leading U.S. producer of frozen processed potato products, and Florida, the leading U.S. producer of frozen concentrated orange juice, are also major employers in this sub-sector. Major U.S. based companies in this sub-sector include Birds Eye Foods , ConAgra Foods , McCain USA , NORPAC Foods , Heinz Frozen Foods , J.R. Simplot , and Dole Foods . The specialty canning sub-sector generated nearly $7 billion in product shipments in 2004, or roughly 18% of the U.S. fruit and vegetable processing industry’s 2004 economic output . In 2004, this sub-sector employed nearly 14,000 people in 130 different facilities . The primary products manufactured by this sub-sector that are of relevance to fruit and vegetable processing are canned soups and stews and canned baby foods, large round garden pots which often contain processed vegetables as primary ingredients.
Product shipments of canned soups and stews and canned baby foods in 2002 represented nearly 60% of the total 2002 economic output of U.S. specialty canneries . Other major products manufactured by the specialty canning sub-sector include canned beans and chili and canned nationality foods . A summary of key products manufactured by this sub-sector is provided in Appendix A. Texas and California were the largest employers in U.S. specialty canneries in 2002 . Major U.S. based companies in this sub-sector include Campbell Soup Company , Gerber Products , and Goya .Dried and dehydrated food manufacturing is the smallest sub-sector of the U.S. fruit and vegetable processing industry in economic terms, generating just over $4 billion in product shipments in 2004 . Dried and dehydrated food manufacturers employed around 14,300 people at 186 different facilities in 2004 . The drying and dehydration of foods is one of the oldest preservation techniques known to man, and relies on the removal of moisture from foods to retard or prevent the growth of micro-organisms. The term “dehydrated” generally refers to foods with moisture content reduced below the point at which micro-organisms can grow , while the term “dried” generally refers to foods with reduced moisture content in general . Key products manufactured by this sub-sector include dried and dehydrated soup mixes , dried and dehydrated potatoes , dried and dehydrated onions , and dried and dehydrated raisins . A summary of key products manufactured by this sub-sector is provided in Appendix A. In 2002, the leading states for employment in the dried and dehydrated food manufacturing sub-sector were California , Idaho , and Illinois . Combined, these three states accounted for roughly two thirds of total subsector employment .
California produces nearly 100% of the nation’s dried raisins, around 70% of the world’s dried prunes, over 50% of the nation’s dehydrated garlic, and is the nation’s leading producer of dehydrated onions. Idaho is the nation’s leading producer of dehydrated potato products . Major U.S. based companies in this sub-sector include Sunsweet Growers , Sun-Maid Growers , Basic American Foods , ConAgra Foods , and J.R. Simplot .In 2003, the U.S. fruit and vegetable processing industry processed nearly 33 billion pounds of fresh fruits and nearly 55 billion pounds of fresh vegetables into canned, frozen, and dried and dehydrated products . Figure 2.3 depicts the mass of fresh fruits processed by product category between 1981 and 2003. After growing steadily throughout the 1980s, the total mass of fruits processed in the United States has fluctuated between 35 and 40 million pounds per year since the early 1990s. 3 In 2003, over 17 billion pounds of fresh oranges were processed into orange juice in the United States, representing roughly one half of all fruits processed by the industry.The U.S. fruit and vegetable processing industry has faced steadily increasing competition from foreign imports since the early 1980s. In 2003, imported processed fruit and vegetable products accounted for around 21% of the total mass consumed in the United States. This number is up from only around 10% in 1981 . Import competition is most significant for fruit juices, for which around one third of all 2003 U.S. consumption was met by imports. In terms of sheer quantity, the most significant imports in 2003 were frozen potato products , apple juice , orange juice , canned pineapples , canned Chile peppers , and canned tomato products .
The top sources of imports in 2003 were Canada , the European Union , Mexico , and China . Most of the products manufactured by the U.S. fruit and vegetable processing industry are consumed domestically. In 2003, exports by the industry totaled less than 8% of total industry economic output, or roughly $3 billion . Of this, nearly one half were exports from the fruit and vegetable canning sub-sector and nearly one third were exports from the frozen fruit, juice, and vegetable manufacturing sub-sector. The top destinations for industry exports in 2003 were Canada , Japan , the European Union , and Mexico .Most manufacturing facilities in the U.S. fruit and vegetable processing industry are fairly small enterprises. In 2002, nearly two thirds of the industry’s facilities employed fewer than 50 people, and nearly 80% of the industry’s facilities employed fewer than 100 people . Large processing facilities with 500 or more employees are somewhat of a rarity in the industry, accounting for only 3% of the facilities in 2002. Table 2.3 summarizes the degree of industry consolidation within each sub-sector of the U.S fruit and vegetable processing industry as of 1997, the last year for which such data are available . The highest degree of industry consolidation can be seen in the specialty canning sub-sector, with only four companies accounting for around two thirds of the sub-sector’s total 1997 economic output. Also highly consolidated are the frozen fruit, juice, and vegetable manufacturing sub-sector and the dried and dehydrated food sub-sector. The fruit and vegetable canning sub-sector is the least consolidated, with the 20 largest companies accounting for only 60% of industry shipments. The operation of many facilities in the U.S. fruit and vegetable processing industry can be highly seasonal. Operations typically depend heavily on the harvesting schedules of the fruits and vegetables processed. For example, canned tomato processing in California typically only occurs between the months of July and October when tomatoes are harvested, and during this period tomato canneries normally run 24 hours per day . In order to minimize the time lapse between harvesting and processing so that freshness and optimal maturity are maintained, many facilities in the U.S. fruit and vegetable processing industry are located close to farming areas . Locating close to farming areas also helps to reduce the costs of transporting fruits and vegetables from the field to the processing plant. Although many crops are processed immediately after harvest, some crops can be stored for weeks after harvest in controlled temperature and humidity environments to suit the operating capacity of individual facilities . The harvesting season for most fruits and vegetables in the United States runs from early spring until late fall; however, large round pots some facilities can be run year round by importing fruits and vegetables from overseas for processing.The processing techniques that are employed by U.S. fruit and vegetable processors are as diverse as the variety of products that are manufactured by the industry. At any given facility, the choice of individual processes as well as the process sequences that are employed will depend heavily on the preservation method used and on the specific fruits and vegetables that are processed. However, there are many unit processes that are common across the industry. Unit processes such as washing, blanching, peeling, conveying, and size reduction can be found in nearly every type of fruit and vegetable processing facility in the United States.
Furthermore, there are many unit processes that are common across individual sub-sectors . Thus, while there is a diversity of processing techniques employed across the industry, a core group of unit processes exists that provides the basic building blocks for process sequences employed in nearly every U.S. fruit and vegetable processing facility. Section 3.1 provides a brief overview of the most significant unit processes employed in the U.S. fruit and vegetable processing industry. The unit process descriptions are grouped into six categories: raw materials preparation, canning, thermal processes, mechanical separation processes, refrigeration and freezing, and miscellaneous processes. Section 3.2 presents process flow diagrams for several key products manufactured by the U.S. fruit and vegetable processing industry, which illustrate how unit processes are typically sequenced within the various industry sub-sectors.The unit processes associated with raw materials preparation are typically the first processes that raw fruits and vegetables are subjected to after harvest. In general, raw materials preparation processes are aimed at: readying raw fruits and vegetables for preservation through cleaning, removal of unwanted items such as peels, husks, cores, pits, and stems, transforming them into the proper size and shape, and, inactivating microbial and enzymatic activity, where necessary. Cleaning is done to remove dirt and other surface contaminants as well as foreign objects such as stones, insects, leaves, and stems prior to further processing. Dry processes include the use of air classifiers de-stoners, and vibrating screens. Wet processes, which are sometimes referred to as washing, generally involve the use of high pressure water sprays, soaking, agitated tanks, and flumes to remove surface contaminants. Washing is often done using hot water, which aids in contaminant removal, and can also involve the use of detergents. Grading and sorting are terms that are often used interchangeably in practice, but in general refer to unit processes that are aimed at: removing spoiled or damaged fruits and vegetables from the processing stream for quality control purposes, and segregating fruits and vegetables based on their size, weight, and/or color for further processing . Grading and sorting can either be done manually, using skilled operators who separate products based on visual inspection, or by using specialized grading and sorting equipment. Such specialized equipment includes rotary screen size graders, belt and roller sorters, vibrating deck screens, and optical sorters that use pneumatic ejectors to separate products based on color.For many fruits and vegetables, the removal of unwanted components such as husks, shells, pits, cores, and stems is necessary prior to preservation. Husking is a unit process used for corn, which generally involves rapidly revolving rubber or milled steel rolls that catch husks and remove them from the corn cob . For peas and beans, the shelling process is used to thresh products from their pods using a series of beaters . The pitting process is common employed to remove the pits from cherries, peaches, apricots, olives, and plums. Generally, pitting processes center fruits in pockets or holes where the pit is quickly punched out using a plunger . For some fruits, most notably peaches, pits can also be removed by mechanical systems that halve the product and shake out the pit. For products with cores, such as apples and pears, the coring process is often employed, in which a reamer is used to essentially bore out the product core. Many fruits and vegetables undergo size reduction before preservation, which is done to transform products into shapes that are more amenable to further processing or that are more desirable or convenient for final consumption. One of the most common unit processes for size reduction is cutting, which typically uses a rotating blade and a series of cutting fixtures to obtain nearly any output shape desired . Blanching is the final step in raw materials preparation for nearly all processed vegetables and some processed fruits. The primary purposes of blanching are: to inactivate enzymes, which can cause discoloration and undesirable changes in product flavor and aroma, and to destroy any life processes, yeast, and mold that may be present in the product prior to further processing . Blanching can also help shrink products for more efficient filling and shorten drying times .