Postharvest Technology: Why apples and bananas are available year-round

Dr Ros Fisher is a multidisciplinary scientist who specialises in crop production and storage. Her first degree was in Chemistry from Imperial College London, which led to a career as a technical writer in the agrochemicals sector. After a career break, she retrained with a second degree in Commercial Horticulture at Hadlow College, followed by a PhD in Plant Physiology at the world renowned Natural Resources Institute. Her PhD studies focused on the factors affecting apple response to long term storage, and involved biophysics, metabolomics, and studying and optimising research and commercial postharvest storage technologies. During this time she presented posters at a number of conferences dedicated to different aspects of her field including specialist postharvest research, broader plant science and analytical chemistry (mass spectrometry). On completion of her PhD, Dr Fisher undertook a postdoctoral research project on potato storage, monitoring stored tubers for chemical and biological signals to aid in optimising treatment application. At the same time, she returned to Hadlow College as an FE and HE lecturer in Horticulture. Dr Fisher moved to full time lecturing at the end of her postdoctoral work and is now Deputy Head of Curriculum for the Agriculture, Agricultural Engineering and Fisheries Management department, lecturing to a range of students across different faculties. During her time at Hadlow, she has project managed three exhibits at RHS Chelsea Flower Show, including the Silver-Gilt medal winning No Such Thing As A Toadstool garden. Dr Fisher is a fully qualified lecturer who holds QTLS, and also has a wealth of educational experience from over ten years volunteering as a school governor on a number of boards, most of this as Chair.