| abstract |
An environmentally friendly process for treating crops, especially sweet potatoes, to prevent or at least inhibit deterioration of the edible plant matter, involves contacting the plant matter with an aqueous composition including phosphonic acid, also known as phosphorous acid, together with at least one of citric acid, phosphoric acid and sulfuric acid, preferably at least phosphoric acid, sufficient to lower the treating water to a pH of less than 4, and also containing at least one of the metals or metal ions of silver, copper and zinc in an amount of 1 to 1,000 ppm. The composition may optionally also contain hydrogen peroxide. |