Effect of Postharvest Treatments and Storage Conditions on Quality Parameters of Carrots

Zoran S Ilic,Saša Barac,Dragan Cvetkovic,Dušan Marinkovic,Ljubomir Šunic,Ljiljana Stanojevic

doi:10.5539/jas.v5n5p100

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine differences between postharvest treatments, either washed (hot water, H2O2 and Na2OCl) or non-washed (control) carrot roots and the effect of different storage conditions, S1 (0°C and > 95% RH) or S2 (0-2°C and < 90% RH) on the compositional changes. Losses of mass, Beta-carotene and vitamin C in carrot taproot (Daucus carota L. cv.’Maestro F1’) were monitored during 160 days of cold storage (in both cold room) plus 20 days at 20°C (market simulation). At the end of 180 days of storage the percentage mass loss ranged from 3.1 to 33.2% depending on the storage condition and disinfection treatment. Loss of Beta-carotene during storage was higher in the S2 (28.2-46.9%) than in the S1 cold storage (7.8-20.7%). The vitamin C loss in carrot root inside the S1 cold room ranged from 2.0% to 18.2%, while the vitamin C loss was significantly higher (20.7%-52.3%) under simple refrigerated cold storage (S2). Our experimental results indicate that prestorage root washing (Na2OCl) significantly reduced weight loss, while hot water treatment maintaining a quality (Beta-carotene and vitamin C). Storage at cold room (S1) after these treatments, is a practical strategy for reducing weight loss, Beta-carotene and vitamin C contents in the carrot during prolonged storage.

Highlights

Carrots (Daucus carota L.) are, in general, one of the best sources of β-carotene in our diet, and they provide 17% of the total β-carotene intake in human nutrition (Alasalvar et al, 2001). β-carotene is the principal precursor of vitamin A, which is involved in vision, cell differentiation, synthesis of glycoproteins, mucus secretion from the epithelial cells, and overall growth and development of bones
A thirty-day carrot storage resulted in a significant reduction in vitamin C content (47%) and β-carotene content of 11% (Matejkova & Petrikova, 2010)
At the end of 180 days of storage the percentage mass losses ranged from 3.1% to 33.2% depending on the storage condition and disinfection treatment

Summary

Introduction

Carrots (Daucus carota L.) are, in general, one of the best sources of β-carotene in our diet, and they provide 17% of the total β-carotene intake in human nutrition (Alasalvar et al, 2001). β-carotene is the principal precursor of vitamin A, which is involved in vision, cell differentiation, synthesis of glycoproteins, mucus secretion from the epithelial cells, and overall growth and development of bones. The carrot has low metabolic activity at low temperatures, as shown by the low respiration rate (Stoll & Weichmann, 1987) and can be stored for 6-8 months without loss of quality under optimal storage conditions (Ilić et al, 2009). The most significant changes in postharvest quality are weight loss, bitterness, bacterial deterioration, rooting and sprouting. All of these changes can be prevented by different methods including cold storage, postharvest treatment and chemical applications. Loss of β-carotene during carrot storage was observed to be higher in the cellar than in the cold storage (Fikselova et al, 2010). A thirty-day carrot storage resulted in a significant reduction in vitamin C content (47%) and β-carotene content of 11% (Matejkova & Petrikova, 2010).

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