Costs of processing snap beans for freezing in Tennessee

The objectives of this study were: 1. To determine the costs of processing snap beans for freezing in four existing plants. 2. To design model plants for processing snap beans for freez ing at least cost. 3. To determine how the costs vary in model plants according to plant size, less than capacity operation, length of season, size of container, and per cent of recovery. 4. To evaluate the relative efficiency of processors freezing snap beans in Tennessee. Model plants provide a means of reducing costs by incorporating information from existing plants. It is hypothesized that models developed in this study may provide a means for processing under least cost conditions by evaluating the important factors associated with the costs of processing, namely: plant size, length of season, capacity of operation, size of container, and per cent of recovery. It is possible to evaluate the relative efficiency of the plants processing snap beans for freezing in Tennessee by making direct comparisons with the model plants which have been developed.