Modified Atmosphere and Humidity Film Reduces Browning Susceptibility of Oriental Melon Suture Tissue during Cold Storage

Abstract

Oriental melons have a relatively short shelf life as they are harvested during the summer season and susceptible to cold-induced injuries. Typical chilling injury when stored at 4 °C is expressed as browning of the fruit suture. To prolong the shelf life and reduce browning of the fruit, the effects of modified atmosphere packaging (MAP), X-tend modified atmosphere (MA)/modified humidity (MH) bulk packaging (XF), and polyethylene (PE) packaging, on oriental melons were investigated during storage at 4 °C and 10 °C for 14 days and under retail display conditions at 20 °C. The O2 concentrations in PE packages stored at 4 °C and 10 °C ranged from 17.4 to 18.5%, whereas those in XF packages were reduced to 16.3–16.6%. The CO2 content of XF package (4.2–4.6%) was higher than that of PE package (1.4–1.9%) stored at 4 °C or 10 °C. Relative humidity (RH) saturated in the PE packages but not in the XF packages after seven days of storage. Furthermore, PE packages performed better at maintaining melon weight and firmness than XF packages during storage at 10 °C for 14 days and under retail display conditions at 20 °C. PE and XF packages effectively reduced the browning index of the peel and white linear sutures of oriental melons compared with the unpackaged control during cold storage at 4 °C, and this observation was maintained at the retail display condition at 20 °C. The enhanced CO2 levels, reduced O2 levels, and optimal RH values that were provided by the MAP, prevented the browning symptoms, and improved the marketability and shelf life of oriental melons.

Effective Phytosanitary Treatment for Export of Oriental Melons (Cucumis melo var L.) Using Ethyl Formate and Modified Atmosphere Packaging to Control Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Hemiptera: Aleyrodidae)

“…Modified atmosphere packaging of Oriental melons has been well studied, as they need specific packaging during export and storage because of their short shelf-life and susceptibility to cold-induced damage [ 14 ]. Vessel transportation is readily selected for the export of Oriental melons because of the low cost of transportation, but it takes 3–10 days longer than air transportation, leading to increased decay [ 36 ].…”

“…Vessel transportation is readily selected for the export of Oriental melons because of the low cost of transportation, but it takes 3–10 days longer than air transportation, leading to increased decay [ 36 ]. Using polyethylene (PE) film and X-tend modified atmosphere (MA)/modified humidity film for Oriental melons at 4 °C and 10 °C for 14 days was found to prolong the shelf-life and reduce the browning of the fruit during storage [ 14 ].…”

“…Moreover, modified atmosphere packaging (MAP), which increases CO 2 and decreases O 2 concentrations, while also reducing respiration and moisture, is required. These conditions are important for maintaining the quality of melons during export [ 3 , 14 , 15 ]. Phytosanitary disinfestation guidelines for the control of T. vaporariorum and quality control of C. melo may affect the export of melons from South Korea.…”

Identification of Candidate Chromosome Region Related to Melon (Cucumis melo L.) Fruit Surface Groove Trait Through Biparental Genetic Mapping and Genome-Wide Association Study

“…Park and colleagues observed the area of melon fruit surface groove histologically and found that the volume and tightness of melon epidermal cells had changed during cold storage. The groove area on the fruit surface destroys the cuticle, reduces the protection of epidermal wax, and accelerates the browning of the pericarp ( Park et al, 2020 ). The fruit surface groove also has a significant negative correlation with fruit cracking, and melon with fsg does not easily crack.…”

New host-pathogen associations of horticultural crops in the south-east of Spain

“…Para la tecnología de AM, el producto se envasa en una película plástica. La reducción del O 2 o los niveles elevados de CO2 en el interior del paquete, pueden reducir la producción de etileno, retrasar el ablandamiento y ralentizar varios cambios en la composición relacionados con la maduración (Park et al, 2020). La permeabilidad del paquete, la respiración del producto y el riguroso control de la temperatura y la humedad relativa, son los principales factores de interacción a considerar para garantizar la fiabilidad del envasado en AM (Tano et al, 2007;Paulsen et al, 2018).…”