Editorial: Advancements in post-harvest physiology and technology of fruits and vegetables for sustainable food production

The growing global demand for food, combined with the urgent need for more sustainable agricultural systems, highlights the critical role of post-harvest management of fruits and vegetables. Physical losses, nutritional and sensory deterioration are issues that remain key challenges in fresh produce supply chains. Within this context, the Research Topic "Advancements in Post-Harvest Physiology and Technology of Fruits and Vegetables for Sustainable Food Production" emphasizes that increasing food production is not enough -what matters is preserving what is harvested through physiological understanding, appropriate technology, and integrated approaches, exploring different yet complementary perspectives on postharvest physiology and technology -ranging from preharvest factors influencing fruit integrity to the valorization of natural compounds and plant residues for food preservation and quality enhancement.Such perspectives reflect a broader transition toward circular economy models, where plant residues, bioactive compounds, and post-harvest by-products are re-envisioned as inputs for new food preservation strategies. Even as the field moves decisively toward circular-economy principles, postharvest research must go beyond a techno-centric perspective and adopt an economic value-based lens that balances the aspiration for circularity with its real costs, benefits, and distributional impacts on society (Khanna et al., 2024;Meneses-Espinosa et al., 2023). Thus, this transition requires rethinking the very purpose of postharvest science and technology -from merely extending shelf life to designing systems that minimize environmental impact, optimize resource flows, support long-term