Sun is Shining: Solar Energy and Agriculture

Dried fruit is a delicious and nutritious snack, and is a good complement to other dishes. Use it to top ice cream or cereal, or add it to cakes. Dried fruit tastes sweeter than fresh fruit because the water has been taken out of it, which makes the flavor of the fruit concentrated. 

Using a dehydrator with solar energy is perhaps the most convenient and environmentally friendly method of drying fruit.Using solar heat for drying has become popular because it is especially well suited for delicate crops, and will not burn or harm produce, which may happen with steam heated or fossil-fuel heated air. These systems are effective and cost-efficient in other process drying and heating applications.

Drying removes the moisture from the food so bacteria, yeast and mold cannot grow and spoil the food. Drying also slows down the action of enzymes (naturally occurring substances which cause foods to ripen), but does not inactivate them.

In drying, warm temperatures cause the moisture to evaporate. Low humidity allows moisture to move quickly from the food to the air. Air current speeds up drying by moving the surrounding moist air away from the food. Because drying removes moisture, the food becomes smaller and lighter in weight. When the food is ready for use, the water is added back, and the food returns to its original shape.

Some advantages of solar dried fruit:

• Drying is a low-cost way to preserve food
• Dried foods retain more of their nutrients than bottled or canned foods
• Dehydrated fruits require less storage space than bottled or canned goods
• Storing the dehydrated foods does NOT require electricity

If you want to get started at home, let us know and we can point you in the right direction!