Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
symptoms of chilling injury, reduces water loss, improves fruit appearance and
assures a more even application of fungicide used to control rots (Paull and
Rohrbach, 1985; Paull and Chen, 2003). There is no worldwide uniformity in
acceptance of wax components, so importing-country restrictions need to be
considered. If the wax injures the crown leaves, only the fruit body is waxed.
Postharvest fungicide is normally included in the wax.
Fresh fruit quality standards are based upon recognized appearance
characteristics (Table 12.6). The fruit needs to be mature, fi rm, well formed,
free of defects, have fl at eyes and a minimum soluble solids of 12% in Hawaii.
Crown size is a crucial grade component, with a minimum size and a set ratio
of crown to fruit length (0.33-1.5) for the higher grades. Crowns that develop
during the summer in Hawaii tend to be larger and may require 'gouging'
at harvest to meet the standard. This 'gouging' leaves a wound for possible
disease entry and detracts from overall appearance. 'Gouging' 2 months
before harvest to limit crown growth avoids visible scarring. Fruits are graded
by degree of skin coloration, size (weight), absence of defects and disease, and
other market needs before packing (Soler, 1992).
Temperatures in the range 7.5-12°C are recommended for storage, with
relative humidity of 70-95%; the higher humidity signifi cantly reduces water
loss. At a temperature of 0-4°C, the fruit may be stored for weeks, but upon
removal, the fruit fails to continue ripening and shows severe chilling injury
(Paull, 1993). Half-ripe 'Smooth Cayenne' fruit can be held for about 10
days at 7.5-12.5°C and still have about a week of shelf-life, with no chilling-
induced internal browning.
Table 12.6.
USA fresh pineapple fruit standards. All grades have 10% limits on
defects, 5% on serious damage and 1% on decay.
Varietal
character-
istics
Crown to fruit
length ratio
Standards
Maturity
Free from
Slips knobs
US Fancy
Similar
Mature,
fi
rm,
dry, well
formed, well-
developed
eyes
Decay, sunburn,
injury,
bruising, well-
cured butt
Single
crown,
no slips
Ratio less than
1.5, not less
than 12 cm
in size
US #1
Similar
Mature,
fi
rm,
dry, well
formed, well-
developed
eyes
Decay, sun-
burn, injury,
bruising, fairly
well-cured
butt
<5 Slips
Ratio less than
2.0 and
greater than
10 cm in
size
US #2
Similar
Mature,
fi
rm,
dry, fairly
well formed
eyes
Serious decay,
sunburn,
injury, bruising
Slips
Any ratio,
double
crown
