TupperGal
10-16-2005, 09:54 AM
Keeping Your Greens Green
With Tupperware® FridgeSmart Containers
How many of you have money to burn? If so, see me after the demonstration – I want to learn
your secret! Most of you (OK, all of you) would tell me it is CRAZY to throw away money. But
throwing away the things that you have bought with your money is the same thing, isn’t it?
You have traded the only thing you can never regain, your time, which you exchanged for
money, for something perishable. And according to the University of Arizona’s Garbage
Project, you throw away 150 pounds of it a year?!? Even if you were throwing away 150
pounds of something inexpensive like cabbage, currently 33 cents per pound, that is $50. Now
let’s think of something a bit more expensive like grapes at $1.50; that is still $225. Or lettuce
at $1.69 per head during our drought. I don’t know about you, but the thought of losing that
kind of money makes me ill. What is the last thing you had to send down the disposal?
Would you like to be proud of the condition of the fresh fruits and vegetables in your
refrigerator? Would you like to be able to take advantage of terrific sale prices on seasonal
produce and enjoy it for weeks, freeing you from enslavement to market prices? Would you
like to be confident that you are serving fresh, nutritious foods to your family?
One more thing to consider: What does your family eat for snacks? Do you go for
“convenience” foods, like prepackaged cookies, or do you eat fresh fruits and vegetables? If
you are not eating healthy snacks, is it because they are inconvenient? After all, when faced
with a huge watermelon on a platter in the fridge, or a pack of Oreos, what’s it going to be?
Tupperware has the answer with FridgeSmart, a series of scientifically designed, intelligent
containers that preserve the quality of your produce. Tupperware commissioned scientists at
the University of Florida’s Horticultural Sciences Department in 1997 to pursue research on
ways to extend the storage life of produce. This team spent nearly three years comparing items
stored unwrapped in the crisper, sealed in traditional Tupperware containers such as the Easy
Crisp, and in Tupperware containers with “vent patterns.” Traditional Tupperware containers
performed well with some items, like lettuce, but others, notably broccoli, did not fare so well.
Why is this? Thanks to the generosity of the principal researcher, we now have the scientific
facts, and I will share some highlights with you tonight.
Did you know that after produce is harvested, it is not really “dead”? Think about potatoes for
a moment. Don’t they sprout after a certain period of time? Did you know that the yellow
broccoli you may have in your fridge is actually a FLOWER? The fruits and vegetables you buy
are actually LIVING, METABOLICALLY ACTIVE organisms! And these different products
“behave” differently after harvest, depending upon the stage of development that has been
reached. For example, “broccoli is composed of small, immature (undeveloped) flower buds,
which would eventually develop into fully mature, yellow pigmented flowers.” Carrots, at the
other extreme, are harvested at the end of their growth cycle and will remain in a dormant
state for a fairly long period of time.
So what exactly is going on with these “zombies”? They are BREATHING! Yes, that is correct –
they are breathing. Specifically, they are converting sugars to generate the energy to continue
growing or to maintain their cells, consuming oxygen and producing carbon dioxide. The
more immature (or even damaged) the item, the more respiratory activity occurs. Here is a
graphic illustration from the research team:
Time (arbitrary units)
Growth (arbitrary units)
Asparagus
Summer squash
Broccoli
Turnip
Potato
Carrot
Respiration (arbitrary units)
So what does that have to do with whether my broccoli is good or spoiled? Well, in a sealed
container, broccoli quickly uses up all the oxygen as it releases carbon dioxide. It actually
modifies the atmosphere of the container. Within 24 hours, the optimal oxygen level of 21%
declines to only 1 to 2%. In short, your broccoli is suffocating!
Berries, on the other hand, fare best in an atmosphere low in oxygen and high in carbon
dioxide. Oxygen is the high-octane fuel needed by botrytis, or gray mold spores. Storing
berries in a cold, tightly sealed container, or “atmospherically controlled environment”, will
preserve their quality for a longer period of time than in the containers provided at the market.
Tupperware recognized the need to accommodate a wide range of produce, from the heavy
breathers like broccoli to the uptight little berries. But how to do that, since they all have
different oxygen requirements? The research team documented that “providing even small
ventilation channels…[reduces] problems caused by O2 depletion and CO2 accumulation.”
There is a need to ventilate for the high respirers and to maintain a closed environment for the
low respirers.
These findings led to some radical changes in product design, which yielded a prestigious
European Red Dot Award for Tupperware. Parenthetically, the new Egg Storer is also a past
Red Dot winner.
�� ACE/Vent Covers: The most notable difference in the new FridgeSmart containers
compared to traditional Tupperware, and, frankly, anything else on the market, are the
two white vent covers and air vents present on the front of every container. The vent
covers can be both open, both closed, or one open and one closed. This innovation
creates what is called an Atmosphere Controlled Environment, or ACE, which maintains
proper levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide for a wide variety of produce items.
�� Integrated grid: Some traditional Tupperware containers featured a separate grid insert
to elevate the contents above any condensation in the container. While some moisture
is necessary to maintain a desirable crisp texture, direct contact can cause the contents
to become soggy and even rot. FridgeSmart containers feature a corrugated bottom,
inside and out. Inside, the contents are elevated to promote airflow within the
container and protection from condensation. Outside, the “grid” promotes airflow
around the container, which results in better cooling and preservation.
�� Thicker Construction: The research team noted that, particularly in longer containers,
there was a problem with air leakage. You may have noticed this with products like the
Easy Crisp or the Jumbo Bread Server. They recommended modifying the form of the
containers so that they would be more rigid and impermeable. This design change
resulted in the thicker walls and seals and the new method of sealing the containers
often referred to as “running track”. To seal them, first open a vent cover so that we
are not forcing a vacuum into the container. (This would make it very difficult to close
the container, and can even result in damage to the seal.) Begin at the closest edges,
With Tupperware® FridgeSmart Containers
How many of you have money to burn? If so, see me after the demonstration – I want to learn
your secret! Most of you (OK, all of you) would tell me it is CRAZY to throw away money. But
throwing away the things that you have bought with your money is the same thing, isn’t it?
You have traded the only thing you can never regain, your time, which you exchanged for
money, for something perishable. And according to the University of Arizona’s Garbage
Project, you throw away 150 pounds of it a year?!? Even if you were throwing away 150
pounds of something inexpensive like cabbage, currently 33 cents per pound, that is $50. Now
let’s think of something a bit more expensive like grapes at $1.50; that is still $225. Or lettuce
at $1.69 per head during our drought. I don’t know about you, but the thought of losing that
kind of money makes me ill. What is the last thing you had to send down the disposal?
Would you like to be proud of the condition of the fresh fruits and vegetables in your
refrigerator? Would you like to be able to take advantage of terrific sale prices on seasonal
produce and enjoy it for weeks, freeing you from enslavement to market prices? Would you
like to be confident that you are serving fresh, nutritious foods to your family?
One more thing to consider: What does your family eat for snacks? Do you go for
“convenience” foods, like prepackaged cookies, or do you eat fresh fruits and vegetables? If
you are not eating healthy snacks, is it because they are inconvenient? After all, when faced
with a huge watermelon on a platter in the fridge, or a pack of Oreos, what’s it going to be?
Tupperware has the answer with FridgeSmart, a series of scientifically designed, intelligent
containers that preserve the quality of your produce. Tupperware commissioned scientists at
the University of Florida’s Horticultural Sciences Department in 1997 to pursue research on
ways to extend the storage life of produce. This team spent nearly three years comparing items
stored unwrapped in the crisper, sealed in traditional Tupperware containers such as the Easy
Crisp, and in Tupperware containers with “vent patterns.” Traditional Tupperware containers
performed well with some items, like lettuce, but others, notably broccoli, did not fare so well.
Why is this? Thanks to the generosity of the principal researcher, we now have the scientific
facts, and I will share some highlights with you tonight.
Did you know that after produce is harvested, it is not really “dead”? Think about potatoes for
a moment. Don’t they sprout after a certain period of time? Did you know that the yellow
broccoli you may have in your fridge is actually a FLOWER? The fruits and vegetables you buy
are actually LIVING, METABOLICALLY ACTIVE organisms! And these different products
“behave” differently after harvest, depending upon the stage of development that has been
reached. For example, “broccoli is composed of small, immature (undeveloped) flower buds,
which would eventually develop into fully mature, yellow pigmented flowers.” Carrots, at the
other extreme, are harvested at the end of their growth cycle and will remain in a dormant
state for a fairly long period of time.
So what exactly is going on with these “zombies”? They are BREATHING! Yes, that is correct –
they are breathing. Specifically, they are converting sugars to generate the energy to continue
growing or to maintain their cells, consuming oxygen and producing carbon dioxide. The
more immature (or even damaged) the item, the more respiratory activity occurs. Here is a
graphic illustration from the research team:
Time (arbitrary units)
Growth (arbitrary units)
Asparagus
Summer squash
Broccoli
Turnip
Potato
Carrot
Respiration (arbitrary units)
So what does that have to do with whether my broccoli is good or spoiled? Well, in a sealed
container, broccoli quickly uses up all the oxygen as it releases carbon dioxide. It actually
modifies the atmosphere of the container. Within 24 hours, the optimal oxygen level of 21%
declines to only 1 to 2%. In short, your broccoli is suffocating!
Berries, on the other hand, fare best in an atmosphere low in oxygen and high in carbon
dioxide. Oxygen is the high-octane fuel needed by botrytis, or gray mold spores. Storing
berries in a cold, tightly sealed container, or “atmospherically controlled environment”, will
preserve their quality for a longer period of time than in the containers provided at the market.
Tupperware recognized the need to accommodate a wide range of produce, from the heavy
breathers like broccoli to the uptight little berries. But how to do that, since they all have
different oxygen requirements? The research team documented that “providing even small
ventilation channels…[reduces] problems caused by O2 depletion and CO2 accumulation.”
There is a need to ventilate for the high respirers and to maintain a closed environment for the
low respirers.
These findings led to some radical changes in product design, which yielded a prestigious
European Red Dot Award for Tupperware. Parenthetically, the new Egg Storer is also a past
Red Dot winner.
�� ACE/Vent Covers: The most notable difference in the new FridgeSmart containers
compared to traditional Tupperware, and, frankly, anything else on the market, are the
two white vent covers and air vents present on the front of every container. The vent
covers can be both open, both closed, or one open and one closed. This innovation
creates what is called an Atmosphere Controlled Environment, or ACE, which maintains
proper levels of oxygen and carbon dioxide for a wide variety of produce items.
�� Integrated grid: Some traditional Tupperware containers featured a separate grid insert
to elevate the contents above any condensation in the container. While some moisture
is necessary to maintain a desirable crisp texture, direct contact can cause the contents
to become soggy and even rot. FridgeSmart containers feature a corrugated bottom,
inside and out. Inside, the contents are elevated to promote airflow within the
container and protection from condensation. Outside, the “grid” promotes airflow
around the container, which results in better cooling and preservation.
�� Thicker Construction: The research team noted that, particularly in longer containers,
there was a problem with air leakage. You may have noticed this with products like the
Easy Crisp or the Jumbo Bread Server. They recommended modifying the form of the
containers so that they would be more rigid and impermeable. This design change
resulted in the thicker walls and seals and the new method of sealing the containers
often referred to as “running track”. To seal them, first open a vent cover so that we
are not forcing a vacuum into the container. (This would make it very difficult to close
the container, and can even result in damage to the seal.) Begin at the closest edges,