Abstract
Cherry tomatoes are climacteric fruits that have a limited shelf life. Over the years, many methods have been applied to preserve the fruit quality and safety of these fruits. In this study, a novel method of combining mucilage from dragon fruits and UV-C irradiation was carried out. Cherry tomatoes were subjected to UV-C irradiation and edible coating, both as a stand-alone and hurdle treatment. The edible coating was prepared from the mucilage of white dragon fruits. Quality parameters including color, weight loss, total soluble solids, titratable acidity, ascorbic acid, antioxidant analysis (total phenolic content and flavonoid content), and microbial analysis were measured throughout 21 days of storage at 4 °C. Results showed that the hurdle treatment extended shelf life by 21 days, reduced weight loss (0.87 ± 0.05%) and color changes (11.61 ± 0.95 ΔE), and inhibited microbes better than stand-alone treatments. Furthermore, fruits treated with the combination of UV-C and edible coating also contained higher total polyphenol content (0.132 ± 0.003 mg GAE/100 mL), total flavonoid content (13.179 ± 0.002 mg CE/100 mL), and ascorbic acid (1.07 ± 0.06 mg/100 mL). These results show that the combination of UV-C and edible coating as a hurdle treatment could be an innovative method to preserve shelf life and quality of fruits.
Highlights
The consumption of fresh fruits has sharply increased in the past century, which triggered a commercial demand for better logistical and warehousing elements to preserve the quality of fresh produces, at the same time controlling the spread of postharvest diseases of fresh produce during its shelf life [1]
A combination of UV-C and edible coating derived from dragon fruit mucilage has yet to be done, which could provide a low-cost method in improving the postharvest quality of cherry tomatoes
From a pool of cherry tomatoes, 25% of them were used as control (Figure 1b); 25% were dipped in a solution consisting of pure mucilage diluted threefold with distilled water for 30 s (Figure 1a); 25% of cherry tomatoes in group C were irradiated by fluorescent germicidal lamps (Figure 2), 15 cm away from the surfaces of the lamp for 8 min
Summary
The consumption of fresh fruits has sharply increased in the past century, which triggered a commercial demand for better logistical and warehousing elements to preserve the quality of fresh produces (e.g., flavor, color, nutritional aspects, shelf life, and processing characteristics), at the same time controlling the spread of postharvest diseases of fresh produce during its shelf life [1]. The postharvest disease was controlled using synthetic chemicals; due to health and environmental concerns posed by fungicide deposits, stringent regulations have been imposed regarding their use [8] Alternative methods such as controlled atmosphere [9] and ethanol vapor treatment [10] have extended the shelf life of tomatoes. Coatings act as barricades during handling, processing, and storage and do not exclusively delay food deterioration and enhance the quality of the product They are safe due to the integration of antimicrobial compounds or the coating’s natural biocide activity [14]. A combination of UV-C and edible coating derived from dragon fruit mucilage has yet to be done, which could provide a low-cost method in improving the postharvest quality of cherry tomatoes. This study investigates the effect of dragon fruit mucilage coating and UV-C on cherry tomatoes’ shelf life and physicochemical and nutritional quality
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