We investigated the change in compositions of various alcoholic beverages which were stored for 5 years at 3 different conditions, low temperature at 0°C in a refrigerator, in a mountainous area (Hirata village, Fukushima prefecture) and at room temperature in Tokyo. Four types of sake and 4 types of shochu were used in our investigations. (1) Surveying the weather of the mountainous area throughout the year, the average of air atmospheric temperature was 11.4°C, the humidity was 71.9%, and the amount of a rainfall was 94.6 millimeters for a month. (2) Direct reducing sugar (DRS), acidity and amino acidity in sake were decreased, whereas pH and coloring degree were increased year by year. Those changes of sake stored in the mountainous area was midway between those at low temp. and room temp. conditions. Those values of junmai-shu in sake changed greatly, especially ferricicyanide reducing substance (FRS), 3-deoxyglucosone (3-DG), coloring degree and furfural increased rapidly in 3-5 years. (3) In shochu, the change of each component was smaller than those of sake, but a decrease of esters and aldehyde was observed. In the mountainous area, the change in components of shochu were midway between those of two conditions, the same as sake. (4) Sensory evaluation on alcoholic beverages aged in 3 different conditions was done by 12 panels. As a result, all sake and almost all of the shochu aged in storehouses in the mountainous area were given significant estimation. Therefore storage in the mountainous area was considered to be the most suitable for sake and shochu.

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The relationships between storability and contents of phenols, total ascorbic acid (TAA), dehydroascorbic acid (DHA), and L-ascorbic acid (AsA) in eggplant fruits (Solanum melongena) of 4 cultivars 'Senryo 2 gou', 'Shiro-daiennasu', 'Sensyu-mizunasu', 'Black beauty' were studied. Unripe fruits (U. F.), marketing size fruits (M. S. F.), and overripe fruits (O. F.) were harvested in summer or fall. The contents of phenols, TAA DHA and AsA were high with U. F. than M. S. F. or O. F. in all cultivars in both summer and fall.These contents of 'Senryo 2 gou' eggplant fruits did not change extensively during storage at 20°C at all growing stages. The phenol contents in U. F. and M.S. F. showing chilling injury had a sharp increase by 3rd day of storage at it and then decreased. The phenol contents in O. F. showing less chilling injury did not change during storage at it. The contents of TAA and DHA in U. F. decreased rapidly on the 1st day of storage at 1°C and then increased thereafter, while the AsA content in U. F. continued to decrease. The contents of TAA, DHA and AsA in M. S. F. and O. F. decreased slightly at 1°C.

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Sterilizing effect on the dipping treatment of sodium hypochlorite solution has become more useful in the field of food processing. In this study, the sterilization effect of dipping treatment with sodium hypochlorite solution on the ascorbic acid contents of partially processed vegetables (lettuce and cabbage) were investigated. During the treatment of sodium hypochlorite solution, the ascorbic acid contents of fresh-cut lettuce and cabbage decreased and then a large portion of total ascorbic acid was converted to dehydroascorbic acid. The total ascorbic acid content was further decreased by wash in water process after the treatment of sodium hypochlorite solution.

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Import of apple fruit from Korea amounted to about 50 to 60 metric tons in '92 to '94. Main cultivar in Korea and Japan is 'Fuji' for its sweetness and adequate hardness of the fruit. So, it is very important to compare the quality of the fruit between Japan and Korea for the future of apple trading. We collected six carton boxes in which medium-sized fruits (32-40 fruits/box) apiece from Yochon and Taegu in Korea, and two carton boxes each from Aomori, Akita, Yamagata, Fukushima and Nagano (Nagano city and Matsukawa town) in Japan, and analyzed the fruit weight, shape, hardness, Brix, titratable acid and rate of squeeze. We had measured temperature and precipitation of the districts in fruit growth period and analyzed the influence of climatic conditions to the quality of the fruit. Mean and maximum temperature in July of Taegu and yochon, Korea were higher than Japan, and minimum temperature during June to October of Aomori was lower than other districts of both countries. Precipitation of Matsukawa during May to September was heavier than other districts of both countries, however precipitation was almost same in all districts of both countries except Matsukawa. Fruits weight of Fukushima was largest and of other districts was almost same, and difference of diameter and length of Japanese fruits were smaller than Korea. So, the fruits of Japan were more symmetric than Korean ones. However, the deference of D/L index, flesh hardness, Brix, titratable acid and rate of squeeze was not significant between Japan and Korea. Coefficient of variation (C.V.) of fruit weight, diameter, length and D/L index in Japan were remarkably smaller than Korea, however, the fresh hardness, Brix, titratable acid and rate of squeeze were not so different between Japan and Korea.

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Kenya is an East African country with a total land area of 581, 787 km2 and a population of approximately 21 million. Of the total land, approximately 520, 000 km2 is utilized for agricultural production. However, most of the agricultural area falls into arid and semi-arid areas, having an annual rainfall of 612.5 mm or less. Only 19 % of the total agricultural area receives annual rainfall of more than 735 mm. The average annual rainfall of selected cities in eight provinces is shown in Table 1.
In addition to rainfall, temperature plays an important role in agricultural productivity. In Kenya, the altitude of arable area ranges between almost sea level to approximately 3, 000 m above sea level and this influences the temperature of the given area.
As shown in Table 2, the warm zone with adequate rainfall is extensively utilized for agricultural production. This area exists in the Rift Valley, Central and part of the Eastern and Western Provinces. The arid and semi-arid zones, including the North Eastern province and part of the Rift Valley province, are mainly utilized for animal production.
Kenya's economic backbone is agriculture. The agricultural sector provides a base for her economic growth, employment creation and foreign exchange earnings. This sector contributed 26.2 % of real growth domestic product, while manufacturing and service sectors contributed 13.6% and 60.2 %, respectively, during the 1990-1995 period. Furthermore, agriculture is the major foreign exchange earner, second to tourism. The major agricultural exports include tea, coffee and horticultural crops as shown in Table 3.

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