Abstract
Late pear cultivars, such as ‘Conference’, can be stored for a long period if kept in good storage conditions. A three-year study (2011–2013) compared the impact of six-month storage using four technologies—normal atmosphere, normal atmosphere + 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP), controlled atmosphere, and controlled atmosphere + 1-MCP—on the quality parameters of ‘Conference’ pears, such as mass loss, firmness, total soluble solids, acidity, antioxidant capacity, and the incidence of diseases and disorders. Additionally, the study analysed different storage conditions in terms of profitability, based on the market prices for pears in the seasons during which the pears were stored. The storage conditions had a very strong influence on the fruit quality parameters, and were found to affect most visibly the mass loss and the incidence of postharvest diseases and disorders. The storage of ‘Conference’ pears for 180 days in normal atmosphere is not economically viable, even if the fruit is subjected to 1-MCP treatment; at the same time, it is profitable to store ‘Conference’ pears in controlled atmosphere for the same period, no matter whether 1-MCP was applied or not.
Highlights
Pears are the most cultivated pome species in the world after apples [1]
This study revealed that 1-MCP application visibly slows down the softening rate, in the first months of storage—it reduced the total firmness loss by about 1/3 compared to the untreated fruit after six months of NA storage
A three-year study showed that the rootstock type, storage atmosphere, and 1-MCP application affected the storability of ‘Conference’ pears
Summary
Pears are the most cultivated pome species in the world after apples [1]. Pear cv. ‘Conference’ is the most important cultivars in Europe with a yearly production of around 1 million tonnes [2]. It is one of the most commonly stored pear cultivars. The storability of pear, which is a typical climacteric species [3], depends on various factors [4], most notably, the optimal harvest date [5], the fruit cooling rate after harvest [6], the degree of pollination and rootstock [7], storage conditions [8], fertilization, and health [9]. Studies conducted on the influence of pollination on the quality properties of ‘Conference’ pears showed that the number of seeds was positively correlated with fruit mass and calcium content, but was negatively correlated with total soluble solids and firmness [7], and the initial TSS value and firmness are crucial for storability assessment
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