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Controlling Temperature and Water Loss to Maintain Ascorbic Acid Levels in Strawberries During Postharvest Handling
Author(s) -
Nunes M. C. N.,
Brecht J. K.,
Morais A. M. M. B.,
Sargent S. A.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
journal of food science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.772
H-Index - 150
eISSN - 1750-3841
pISSN - 0022-1147
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2621.1998.tb15848.x
Subject(s) - postharvest , ascorbic acid , food science , chemistry , horticulture , biology
‘Chandler’, ‘Oso Grande’ and ‘Sweet Charlie’ strawberries were stored for 8 days at 1 or 10°C, or 4 days at 20°C, either unwrapped or wrapped in PVC film to retard were conducted during the 1 water loss. Total ascorbic acid (AA) content was expressed on a dry weight basis to correct for water loss differences between treatments. Loss of AA was low and did not differ between wrapped treatments at 1 and 10°C, but was much greater at 20°C. Wrapping reduced AA loss by 5‐fold at 1 and 10°C and by 2‐fold at 20°C. The effect was not due to modification of O 2 and CO 2 levels in wrapped treatments, which was minimal. The results indicate that water loss had a greater effect on AA levels than temperature. Combining wrapping with storage at 1 or 10°C reduced AA loss by 7.5‐fold compared to unwrapped strawberries stored at 20°C.