Polyethylene bags to delay ripening of bananas during transport and storage

Bananas were packed in 0.0015-inch polyethylene bags, transported 600 miles by rail from northern N.S.W. to Sydney in a louvred van, and then stored at 68°F. Twelve days after harvest the bananas packed in polyethylene bags were still hard and green, whereas the controls were ripe. The unripe bananas ripened normally after they were removed from the polyethylene bags.