POST HARVEST MANAGEMENT:

The effort should be made to peel the baby corn on the same day and stored in a cool and dry place. It should be carried out in shady places having good ventilation and air circulation. De-husked baby corn should be put in containers like plastic baskets, bags, sacks and ensure that they are not heaped. Baby corn should be transported to the processing unit at the earliest.

Quality traits of baby corn

• Baby corn should be uniform in color, shape and size.
• Color of baby corn should be creamish or light yellow.
• Ears should be straight.
• Ears should not have slitting marks
• Ears should be fresh, free from defects like rotting, over dryness, over ripening and water soaking.
• Trimming of baby corn should be neat and leave no scars on ears.
• Ovule/row arrangement should be regular and straight.

Grading:

Baby corn can be sorted and graded by machine (Figs. 26, 27, 28 and 29) or manually. Different grades of baby corn are mentioned in table 3.

Packaging:

The packing varies from unit to unit. It can be in tin, glasses and polybags. For longer time of preservation, glass packing is the best. Glass packing has 52% baby corn and 48% brine solution. HPMC, Sundernagar(H.P.) is using tin packing. Farmers are generally using polybags for packing.

Processing

Baby corn can be processed to improve its shelf life. Main processing method which can be used to improve the shelf life are:
• Canning
• Dehydration
• Freezing

Canning

Canning is the most commonly used method for processing of baby corn. Baby corn can be canned in brine solution (Fig. 30) and can be stored for months together and transported to far off places. The baby corn ears are usually canned at processing factories. Flow diagram is mentioned below:
Peeled baby corn ---> Cleaning ---> Boiling ---> Soaking ---> Grading ---> Containing ---> Brine solution ---> Exhaust ---> Lid covering ---> Cooling -> Quality Inspection.

Dehydration

Dehydration can be used to increase shelf life of baby corn for longer period. Baby corn can be cut into ½ cm round pieces and dried in oven [air oven/ vaccum oven] or can be solar dried. Dried baby corn can be packed in polythene pack (Fig.31) / vacuum pack/tetrapack and can be stored well for longer period. Dehydrated boby corn can be rehydrated by soaking in water and can be used in preparation of food products. Products developed using dried baby corn have been found to be acceptable organoleptically like those prepared from fresh baby corn.

Freezing

Baby corn can be frozen and stored for long period like other frozen vegetables. Frozen baby corn (Fig. 32) can be used effectively for preparation of food products. Preparation like soups & vegetables prepared from frozen baby corn are as acceptable as preparation made from fresh baby corn. Frozen baby corn can be directly used in various preparations.

Preservation:

After filling baby corn in container, brine and water are added in cans in the proportion of 2:98 (Brine 2% and water 98%), alternatively, a solution of 3% brine, 2% sugar, 0.4% citric acid and balance water can also be used.

Economic returns:

Farmers can take 3-4 crops in a year depending upon the climatic conditions. Economics of baby corn cultivation is as follows: Cost of cultivation per crop (Rs. per hectare)
Cost of cultivation : 15,420/-
Gross return : 60,000/-
Net return : >40,000/-
Yield: 12 q, Rate: 50 Rs/q , Gross return: Rs. 60,000/- (conservative estimate), Fodder: 150 q, Rate: 50 Rs/q Gross Return: RS.7500/-

Marketing :

Assured marketing is pre-requisite for baby corn cultivation. So far, in India, there is no systematic market for baby corn. It can be marketed as fresh husked/dehusked young cobs, canned product and pickles. Since, baby corn candy and pickle are in great demand in USA and some European countries, India could be an important country for export of baby corn in future. Pachranga private company from Panipat (Haryana) is already exporting baby corn pickles. Therefore, there is a need for promoting the baby corn trade in India.