Short steam blanching coupled with flash-vacuum expansion (FVE) and de-pulping was used to obtain purée from purple passion fruits discarded from the export chain. Different steam blanching holding times (80, 95, 110 s) were tested at pressure of 130 kPa. After FVE and vacuum de-pulping, fibers, anthocyanins, carotenoids, rheological properties, and microbial reduction were evaluated in the purées. Fruit purées are obtained with a much higher content of cell-wall and bioactive compounds compared to the fresh arils since part of the fruit shell is incorporated into the purée (approximately 20%), which greatly increases the yield of production. Purées exhibited increasing shear-thinning flow behavior with blanching holding time, resulting in a smoothie-like beverage. A reduction greater than 5 log10 CFU/mL was obtained for molds, yeasts, aerobic mesophilic, and coliforms for all the treatments. The shelf life of smoothies based on nutritional and sensorial quality was extended up to 90 days at refrigeration temperature.

Beetle insect species classified within the Melolonthidae complex (Coleoptera: Scarabaeoidea) are a serious pest in several crops around the world including avocado (Persea americana Mill). The present work focused on determining the spatial behavior of the Melolonthidae complex of beetles and determined the economic impact in avocado crops in Antioquia, Colombia, South America. Beetle presence and damage produced in both foliage and fruits were quantified during 3 years for each avocado tree tested in two planted lots located in different places. The indexes of Cambardella, Morisita, and economic losses were calculated with data obtained. Our results strongly suggest that beetles present an isotropic movement in the lots with the damage beginning by the borders. Once insects enter the lots, they move in any direction inside the crop area with weak or moderate spatial dependence and low or null aggregation. Strong preference for fruits rather than foliage was observed. Economic analysis indicates that damage in fruit skin causes major losses. From observed results, it is proposed that integrated pest control should be directed mainly to fruits from the very early stages of growth and development and traps should be localized strategically and following the spatial and temporal distribution of insects for both prevention and control.

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