Impact of Calcium Chloride Dipping and Beeswax Coating on the Sensory Quality and Shelf Life of Nectarine (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch var. Nucipersica) Fruits

Getaneh Seleshi

doi:10.7176/jnsr/11-21-03

Abstract

This study was conducted to assess the impact of calcium chloride dipping and beeswax coating on the sensory quality and shelf-life of nectarine fruits. The experiment was done under Holeta, Ethiopia condition since 2018. Nectarine fruits of variety ‘89-16N’ were harvested from Holeta Agricultural Research Center orchard and subjected to the combination of four CaCl 2 levels (0, 1.5, 3.0 and 4.5%) and three levels (0, 3 and 6%) of beeswax. The experiment was arranged in a completely randomized design with factorial arrangement in three replications. All the treatments were stored at ambient condition. The data were collected every five days interval. The results revealed that CaCl 2 dipping and beeswax coating had positively influenced the sensory quality and shelf-life of nectarine fruits. The best results were consistently obtained from the combination of 4.5% CaCl 2 and 3.0% beeswax for most of the sensory quality attributes and storage periods. Therefore, CaCl 2 dipping and beeswax coating particularly, 4.5% CaCl 2 +3% beeswax, could be considered for maintaining the sensory quality and extending the shelf-life of nectarine fruits. Keywords: Beeswax, CaCl 2 , coating, nectarine, sensory, shelf-life DOI: 10.7176/JNSR/11-21-03 Publication date: November 30 th 2020

Highlights

Nectarine is a climacteric fruit, which softens and deteriorates quickly at ambient temperature
Firmness The results revealed that nectarine fruits had highly significant (P≤0.001) difference in firmness due to the interaction effect of CaCl2 dipping and beeswax (BW) coating (Table 1)
On day-15, all fruits coated with 6% beeswax, irrespective of CaCl2 treatment levels were statistically at par and had higher firmness values

Summary

Introduction

Nectarine is a climacteric fruit, which softens and deteriorates quickly at ambient temperature. Like other stone fruits, cannot endure long post-harvest handling periods at normal atmospheres. It is a delicate fruit characterized by high perishability due to rapid softening. This restricts drastically its storage potential and enhances post-harvest loss (Robertson et al, 1990; Lurie and Crisosto, 2005). Minimizing postharvest food losses can help to conserve resources and improve human well-being by contributing to food and nutrition security. It can be minimized by extension of shelf-life through checking the rate of transpiration, respiration, microbial infection and protecting membranes from disorganization. To ensure optimum post-harvest quality, stone fruits like nectarines should be protected from excessive post-harvest moisture loss (Bisen and Pandey, 2008; Crisosto and Day, 2012)

Methods

Results

Conclusion