The performance of a refrigerator (net of energy consumption and environmental impact) changes based on many factors, including the weather of the day. Although we can take it for granted that a vegetable can be stored for longer, spoilage times vary greatly.
Beko, a company of the Turkish Arçelik group and one of the leading European household appliance companies, showed its new Harvest Fresh technology at the recent IFA 2019.
Taking advantage of the visibility offered by the popular electronics fair held annually in Germany, Beko illustrated the integration between a traditional system and Harvest Fresh, based on LED technology.
In short
The system works not unlike that of many “electronic vases” present on the market. Food placed in the vegetable sector is exposed to a variable LED light that alternates with darkness, mimicking the daily solar cycle and the spectrum of natural light. This "treatment" preserves vitamins and other nutrients for much longer, while ensuring greater freshness than traditional refrigerators.
Matrix in the fridge
The sun has a very wide range of wavelengths: the only spectrum visible to humans, a small part of the total, varies from 400nm (blue light) to 400nm (red light).
From dusk till dawn, Tarantino would say. If we also add green light frequency we will have all the lights absorbed by the plants to keep their metabolism up by synthesizing the nutrients.
The name of the spectrum used to produce these results is “Photosynthetically active radiation“. In fact, when subjected to a cycle of these lights alternating with darkness, fruit and vegetables in the fridge have the illusion of still being in a beautiful cultivated field enjoying the sun and not in a cold room ready to become our food.
Sounds a bit like The Matrix, if I get the idea.
But it works
We passionately believe in products and technologies that improve well-being, focusing primarily on healthier food
Zeynep Yalim Uzun, chief marketing officer of Beko.
In short, thanks to the contribution of a few LEDs, fruit and vegetables retain their levels of Vitamin A and C for longer, as certified by independent laboratories that have tested foods subjected to this technology.
I'm particularly passionate about the news, if you count how many times I've had to throw away a salad for keeping it just a little longer in the fridge, missing the appointment with a bowl.
Harvest Fresh technology will be available on some models of the Turkish company starting next year.
