Storability in Cold Temperatures Can Be Evaluated Based on Changes in Fruit Quality in Apple Genotypes Under Shelf Life Conditions

Abstract

To compare changes in fruit quality during cold storage with those during shelf life conditions, flesh firmness and titratable acidity (TA) were measured during storage in 20 apple (Malus ·domestica Borkh.) cultivars. Fruit of each cultivar were divided into two groups and stored in chambers controlled at 20 ± 2 8C and 85 ± 5% relative humidity (RH) (shelf life conditions) or 0.5 ± 0.3 8C and 95 ± 5% RH (cold storage). Five of the stored fruit were removed for measurements at 5-or 10-d intervals for 40 d and at 1-month intervals until 10 months after harvest at 20 8C and 0.5 8C, respectively. Data for firmness and TA were subjected to a linear regression and a nonlinear regression, respectively. Moreover, to determine the advantages of 0.5 8C storage over 20 8C storage for retaining firmness and TA, the effect of storage type on extending the storage period was introduced as a parameter. The estimate of the effect of storage type showed that firmness and TA could be retained 8.9 and 3.7 times, respectively, longer at 0.5 8C than 20 8C, independently of the cultivar. Therefore, firmness and TA after cold storage could be predicted by the change in firmness and TA during shelf life conditions. Moreover, cultivar differences regarding quality change under cold storage could be determined in a short period after harvest because the cultivar differences under shelf life conditions were detected within 1 month after harvest.Storage potential is generally evaluated by measuring fruit quality before and after storage. A cultivar with the smallest change in fruit quality between at harvest and after storage or a cultivar with acceptable levels of quality as evaluated by sensory analysis after storage was determined to have a good storage potential. Because apples can be stored and are marketed year-round, the evaluation of fruit quality requires a long time and a large amount of fruit because measurements should be made several times during storage. This means that it is difficult to evaluate the storage potential and select cultivars for their storage potential in apple breeding programs. For this reason, Iwanami et al. (2004) measured changes in fruit firmness during shelf life conditions at 20°C and proposed a regression parameter that could be used as an indicator of storage potential in breeding programs. Changes in fruit quality in shelf life conditions were rapid, and cultivar differences regarding the changes could be determined shortly after harvest. However, the differences among cultivars regarding the degradation of fruit quality in shelf life conditions were not assumed to be the same as those in cold storage, which is the typical method of storage.Fruit quality is defined comprehensively by appearance, texture, flavor, and the absence of physiological disorders. Delayed loss of firmness and titratable acidity (TA) are the most important indicators for evaluating apple storage practices. Therefore, the objectives of this study were 1) to measure changes in firmness and acidity during storage at 0.5°C (cold st...

Differences in Ethylene and Fruit Quality Attributes during Storage in New Apple Cultivars

“…It is likely that the response of flesh firmness to cold storage in 'Green Ball' does not belong to either the 'Summer Dream' and 'Summer King' group or the 'Picnic' and 'Hwangok' group due to an inconsistent response of flesh firmness during cold storage. On the one hand, numerous apple genotypes show a wide range of flesh firmness at harvest and during storage (Iwanami et al, 2008a;Iwanami et al, 2008b;Oraguzie et al, 2007). On the other hand, lower rates of loss of flesh firmness are highly associated with low ethylene producing characteristics during cold or CA storage (Colgan et al, 2006).…”

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