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- Shelf life of minimally processed apple (cv. Jonagored) determined by colour changesPublication . Rocha, A. M. C. N.; Morais, A. M. M. B.Physical, chemical and sensory changes of cut apple (cv. Jonagored) stored in the dark at 4 °C were evaluated. Colour was found to be the critical parameter for this product. Apple cubes underwent severe surface browning primarily during the initial days of storage. The shelf-life of cut apple was therefore very limited, to three days maximum. Sensory analyses and objective quality evaluations of cut apple were considered highly correlated in terms of colour and flavour, especially with respect to fructose and sucrose, showing that the selected sensory attributes were good indicators of overall fruit quality.
- Physical and chemical quality characteristics of strawberries after storage are reduced by a short delay to coolingPublication . Nunes, M. C. N.; Brecht, J. K.; Morais, A. M. M. B.; Sargent, S. A.Chandler’, ‘Oso Grande’ and ‘Sweet Charlie’ strawberries were forced-air precooled after delays of 0 or 6 h at 30 °C to study the effect of delaying precooling on physical and chemical quality characteristics of strawberry fruit. Fruit pulp temperatures were equilibrated to 30 °C prior to the start of each experiment to minimise water loss differences between treatments. Evaluations were made after storage for one week at 1 °C plus one day at 20 °C. Delaying the start of precooling resulted in about 50% greater water loss than in control fruit, which was evident as increases in superficial shrivelling. Tissue firmness values were also 14–22% lower in fruit from the delayed treatment. Fruits were darker (lower L* value), less bright (lower chroma) and apparently less red (lower a* value) with the cooling delay, although hue angle was also lower, which may reflect the occurrence of browning. No significant differences in pH were observed in these experiments, but titratable acidity was slightly lower with the delay to cooling. Delaying precooling also caused increased losses of ascorbic acid, soluble solids, fructose, glucose and sucrose compared to controls. In spite of differences related to harvest time and the variability among cultivars, the general responses were quite similar and illustrate the importance of rapid precooling and subsequent storage at low temperature for maintenance of acceptable appearance, texture and nutritive value of strawberries.
- Quality of strawberries after storage is reduced by a short delay to coolingPublication . Nunes, M. C. N.; Morais, A. M. M. B.; Brecht, J. K.; Sargent, S. A.The effects of delay to cooling and storage were evaluated on postharvest quality and decay of fresh harvested strawberries. 'Chandler' strawberries were forced-air precooled after delays of 0 or 6 hours at 30°C to study the effect of delaying precooling on decay, and physical and chemical characteristics of strawberries. For decay experiments the fruits were previously inoculated with Botrytis cinerea and Rhizopus stolonifer. Fruit pulp temperature was equilibrated to 30°C prior to the start of each experiment to minimize water loss differences between treatments. Evaluations were made after storage for one week at 1°C plus one day at 20°C. Delaying the start of precooling resulted in greater water loss than in control fruits. Tissue firmness values were also lower in fruit from the delay treatment. Fruits were darker, less bright and apparently less red. No significant differences in pH were observed, but titratable acidity was slightly lower with the delay to cooling. Delaying precooling also caused increased losses of ascorbic acid, soluble solids, fructose, glucose and sucrose compared to controls, and also resulted in more decayed fruits. This illustrates the importance of rapid precooling and subsequent storage at low temperature for maintenance of an acceptable appearance, texture, flavor and nutritive value of strawberries.
- Effects of delays to cooling and wrapping on strawberry quality (cv. Sweet Charlie)Publication . Nunes, M. C. N.; Brecht, J. K.; Sargent, S. A.; Morais, A. M. M. B.'Sweet Charlie' strawberries were wrapped with PVC polymeric film, and forced-air precooled after delays of O, 6 or 8 hours at 30°C to study the effect of delaying precooling on physical and chemical quality characteristics of the strawberry. Non-wrapped fruits were used as a control. Evaluations were performed after storage for one week at 1°C plus one day at 20°C. Delaying the precooling resulted in less attractive fruits and loss of quality characteristics. Wrapped strawberries maintained better appearance and quality than nonwrapped berries.