Turmeric—a super food—prevention of post-harvest losses using radio frequency disinfestation

Abstract

Turmeric products are largely infested with Lasioderma serricorne. It was treated with a radiofrequency (RF) disinfestation technique to observe the curative effect of the technology. The technique was evaluated under different electrode height and conveyor speed combinations. The effect of RF disinfestation on the mortality of L. serricorne egg showed that the electrode height of 180 mm gave the least LD50 and LD99.99 of 1.96 and 5.34 min, respectively. RF disinfestation at the electrode height of 225 mm with the conveyor speed of 25 m/h gave cent percent mortality with higher LD99.99. However, there was no significant reduction in curcumin content in untreated (3.10%) and treated (3.08%) turmeric powder. Active components such as ar-tumerone, tumerone and curlone were present in both control and RF disinfested turmeric powders. RF disinfestation of turmeric powder can be recommended for effective control of L. serricorne while preserving the nutrients and surpassing the use of chemical insecticides.