What are the water hardness requirements for vegetable processing?

(Agricultural Wealth Network)    Different vegetable processing techniques have different requirements for water hardness. For example, when pickling vegetables, especially when making pickled vegetables and sauerkraut, as well as when using vegetables to make candied fruit, hard water is preferable for the processing water, because the calcium salts in hard water can improve the crispness of these vegetable products and keep their shape so they do not become mushy from cooking; when drying, washing vegetables with moderately hard water is also beneficial to the product, because the pectin in the vegetable tissues can combine with the calcium salts in the water to form water-insoluble calcium pectate, making the tissues firm and preventing them from softening or deforming; when canning, freezing, and juicing vegetables, however, hard water is not suitable, and soft water is preferable, because canned and frozen vegetable products do not require increased crispness. If hard water is used, it will make their tissues hard and their surfaces rough, affecting quality. At the same time, canning liquid prepared with hard water tends to form sediment after heat sterilization, affecting the appearance of the product.