Author(s): Keneni Kebede

Abstract: A perishable agricultural commodity like potatoes requires great attention to sustain its supply on the market. Because of the lack of appropriate handling and storage, huge amount of potato goes to waste before it reaches to the consumer. Therefore these loss can be minimized by storing them at low temperature under high humidity environment like pit storage. The determination of the physical and chemical properties of potato in the long-term storage and their variations is one of the significant specifications in terms of keeping shelf life of the product with acceptable quality. This paper include the study of physical properties such as sprouting, color change, and rotten were identified by countering, while the chemical properties such as carbohydrate, moisture contents, protein contents, Vitamin, Minerals, Total Soluble Solid and PH were collected and tested in laboratory before and storage period. The chemical properties of some potato tubers increased while decreased at some of them were increased. The changes at the rates of loss of 3.2, 2.2, and 3.6% in terms of weight loss, 3.14, 2.03, and 2.78% in terms of sprouting, 1.25, 1.58 and 1.84% color change, 4.02, 5 and 4.8% protein contents, 83, 84.4 and 84.3% Moisture contents, 7.19, 4.45 and 5.73% total carbohydrate FARC, Kombolcha and Haramaya respectively. All data were collected for five months of storage times with its schedules. The results of studies presented that the physical and chemical changes that occurred in the tubers were depending on the tuber's geometrical size and under storage environment of minimum and maximum temperature and relative humidity of (19 and 29 ℃), 34 and 59%) respectively.

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