How to Store Fresh Vegetables in a Commercial Kitchen (and Cut Waste)
Which vegetables go in the chiller, which stay out, and the storage temperatures and shelf lives for potatoes, onions, tomatoes, greens, herbs and roots.
Produce waste is rarely about buying too much. It's usually about one case being stored in the wrong place: tomatoes in the walk-in going mealy, potatoes under a fluorescent light turning green, coriander wilting in a plastic bag. Here is the storage guide we give to new customers.
Chiller (0–4°C)
- Broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage: 5–7 days for broccoli, 2–3 weeks for whole cabbage. Keep loosely covered.
- Spinach, silverbeet, kale: 3–7 days. Store dry, unwashed, in a breathable bag or lined crate.
- Carrots and daikon: 2–3 weeks. Remove green tops; keep in a bag or covered crate to hold moisture.
- Herbs (coriander, parsley, mint): stems in a little water with a bag over the leaves, or wrapped in damp paper. 4–7 days.
- Spring onion: wrapped or bagged. 5–7 days.
- Cut onions, peeled garlic, cut ginger: covered, use within 2–7 days.
Cool, dark dry store (7–10°C) — not the chiller
- Potatoes: 2–4 weeks. Cold storage converts starch to sugar (dark chips, sweet taste). Light causes greening. Keep bags closed and off the floor.
- Onions: several weeks when cured. Keep in the mesh sack, ventilated, and away from potatoes.
- Whole garlic: room temperature, dry and ventilated. Refrigeration triggers sprouting.
Cellar temperature (10–13°C) if you have it
Tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers and capsicums are all chill-sensitive. Below about 10°C, tomatoes lose aroma and go mealy; cucumbers pit and go watery. If you don't have a cool room at this temperature, store tomatoes at room temperature and buy for 3–4 days at a time rather than a week. Capsicums tolerate the chiller better than the others — use within 1–2 weeks.
Ginger
Whole ginger keeps 3–4 weeks in the chiller, unwrapped in the crisper or in a paper bag. Once cut, cover and use within a week.
Five habits that cut produce waste
- 1Label every case with the delivery date on arrival and rotate first-in, first-out.
- 2Separate potatoes and onions — onions absorb moisture from potatoes and both spoil faster together.
- 3Don't wash greens until you use them; surface water accelerates rot.
- 4Order tomatoes and herbs twice a week rather than once, in smaller quantities.
- 5Check the chiller thermometer weekly. A chiller running at 6–8°C halves the life of leafy greens.
Frequently asked
Should potatoes be stored in the fridge?
No. Refrigerating potatoes converts their starch to sugar, which makes chips brown too quickly and taste sweet. Store potatoes in a cool (7–10°C), dark, dry place with airflow.
How long does broccoli last in a commercial chiller?
Broccoli keeps 4–6 days at 0–4°C when stored unwashed in a breathable bag or crate. It yellows quickly if the chiller runs warm, so check the temperature if heads are turning within a few days.
About the author
Satwant Singh founded VegieFresh in 2022 after more than a decade working hands-on in New Zealand kiwifruit orchards, onion and potato packhouses and the food-processing industry. He runs the Pukekohe depot and personally manages deliveries across Auckland and Hamilton. Read his story.
