Effects of rate of establishment of storage conditions and ethylene removal on the storage performance of ‘Cox's Orange Pippin’ apples

Abstract

The use of rapid establishment of temperature and CA storage conditions, as well as ethylene removal to reduce loss of firmness and ground colour, during storage of apples ( Malus domestica Borkh, ‘Cox's Orange Pippin’) in <1% CO 2 + 1.25% O 2 at 3.5°C was investigated. Samples subjected to rapid establishment (RE) of storage conditions had a higher peel chlorophyll content after 5 months storage, but not after 8 months, than samples from containers where the conditions had been established at a rate typical of normal, well-maintained commercial stores (CR). RE samples were considered firmer than CR by a sensory panel in February but not in May, while penetrometer readings were the same on both occasions. RE samples which had additionally been subjected to a pre-harvest daminozide spray and ethylene removal during storage (LE) were firmer, had a higher peel chlorophyll content and, on the green parts of the surface, a lower Hunter “ b” value in February than both CR and RE samples. The effects of LE on chlorophyll and ground colour were maintained until May, but in both February and May only the ground colour effect was maintained during a simulated marketing period of 14 days at 10°C in air following storage.