Postharvest Physiology and Storage - Tropical and Subtropical Fruits: Postharvest Physiology, Processing and Packaging - page 24

properties and the wetting ability of the surface of the fruit
could change to a varying degree. Thicker layers of the
cuticle might reduce the effectiveness of some fungicide
and other postharvest treatments because of bath-wetting
properties, but those can be overcome by the inclusion of
surfactant products or temperature changes.
Cracks or physical damages of the cuticle occur during
postharvest handling of the fruit. They can alter natural
gas exchange and favor water losses, as the natural bar-
rier is disrupted. Cerdas and Castro (2003) reported the
high sensitivity to mechanical damage of the sweet pas-
sion fruit cuticle ( Passiflora ligularis, Juss) during har-
vesting and handling, resulting in cracks, scratches, and
losses of the cuticle tissue, which rapidly darkens show-
ing brown stains under the fruit skin. They recommended
careful handling and immobilization of the fruit inside ad-
equate packages to avoid friction between fruits and dam-
age caused by the fruit peduncles to the other fruits in the
package.
Waxes and some edible coatings are commercially used
in some fruits, e.g., pineapple, to regulate gas exchange
and control internal browning of the fruit, to reduce water
losses, or to enhance the fruit gloss and appeal for the
consumer.

HARVEST
Protect the product from the hot sun
Transport quickly to the packinghouse

COOLING
Minimize delays before cooling
Cool the product as soon as possible

TEMPORARY STORAGE
Store the product at its optimum temperature
Practice “first-in-first-out” rotation
Ship to market as soon as possible

TRANSPORT TO MARKET
Use refrigerated loading area
Cool truck before loading
Load pellets towards the center of the truck
Put insulating plastic strips inside door of reefer
if the truck makes multiple stops
Avoid delays during transport

HANDLING AT DESTINATION
Use a refrigerated unloading area
Measure product temperature
Move product quickly to proper storage area
Display at proper temperature range
Avoid delays during transport

POSTHARVEST HANDLING
There are five key strategies to reduce fruit deterioration
after harvest: (1) sorting the product eliminating fruits with
mechanical damages and decay symptoms; (2) handling
with care to avoid further mechanical damages; (3) using
adequate packages; (4) cooling down and maintaining cold
chain through all marketing channels (Fig. 2.2); and (5)
avoiding or minimizing risks of product contamination.
Sorting refers to the selection or separation of the fruits
which meet the required characteristics for processing.
Effective elimination of fruit with damages and other de-
fects reduces the risk of product deterioration during han-
dling and storage, since fruit tissues with mechanical dam-
age or decay organisms deteriorate faster than healthy
tissues.
Careful handling helps to preserve the integrity of the
fruit. Physical damages can occur by different types of ef-
fort: impact, compression, puncture, penetration, or vibra-
tion. The sensitivity of the fruit to such damages depends
on the fruit cultivar and maturity stage, the flesh and skin
characteristics, and the nature of automatic handling ef-
fort. However, many damages are not evident at the time
the fruits are mishandled, either because the damaged tis-
sue is under the fruit skin, because the color, appearance,
and surface characteristics do not allow easy detection, or

HANDLING AT FOODSERVICE OUTLETS
Store product at proper temperature
Monitor product temperature during storage
Use the product as soon as possible

Figure 2.2. Maintaining cold chain for the
perishables (source: Adapted from Kader, 2003).

simply because the fruit characteristics, when the dam-
ages occur, hide the injured tissue. However, in most cases,
deteriorative symptoms will show eventually (as the fruit
continues to ripen or during storage/marketing). Major in-
convenience of physically damaged tissues include undesir-
able reactions leading to color and aroma changes, ripening
disorders, microbial contamination, and reduced processing
yields.
Reduction of physical damage can be achieved by elimi-
nating the source or intensity of the mechanical stress over
the fruit. Height drops can be reduced, and proper cush-
ioning materials could be used on packaging lines and