Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
load (Ayhan et al., 1998; Aguayo et al., 2003), and aroma
volatiles (Beaulieu, 2006a, 2006b). The quality attributes
of fresh-cut melons depend on the genotype (Aguayo et al.,
2003; Saftner and Lester, 2009), maturity stage (Simand-
juntak et al., 1996; Beaulieu, 2006b), ethylene production
(Bauchot et al., 1998; Flores et al., 2002; Saftner et al.,
2007), and storage temperature (Bett-Garber et al., 2005).
Extensive research has been done on various processing
and quality aspects of fresh-cut cantaloupes:
Sanitizers/antimicrobial
: nisin, EDTA, sodium lactate,
potassium sorbate (Ukuku and Fett, 2004), chlorine and
hydrogen peroxide (Ukuku and Sapers, 2001; Ukuku
et al., 2004), and ozone (Selma et al., 2008).
Processing treatments
: mild heat (Lamikanra and
Watson, 2007; Fan et al., 2008; Bett-Garber et al.,
2010), UV treatment (Lamikanra et al., 2005), irradi-
ation (Kim et al., 2010), and calcium and/or ascorbare
dips (Lamikanra and Watson, 2000, 2004).
Edible coatings
: chitosan/methyl cellulose based (Sang-
suwan et al., 2008), malic and lactic acid incorporated
soy proteins (Eswaranandam et al., 2007).
Packaging and storage
: MAP (Bai et al., 2001); and
storage temperature (Bett-Garber et al., 2011).
Aroma volatiles
: (Beaulieu, 2007; Beaulieu and Lan-
caster, 2007).
ticipated in composition of cantaloupes from other parts of
the world owing to different climatic and soil conditions,
agricultural practices, and postharvest handling techniques.
Additionally, varietal differences can also contribute to vari-
ations in the composition and nutritional profile.
HONEYDEW
Introduction
Honeydew (
Cucumis melo
var.
inodorous
) belongs to the
botanical family
Cucurbitaceae
(gourd family), which in-
cludes cucumbers, watermelon, cantaloupe, squash, and
pumpkins (Bertelsen et al., 1994). Honeydew is a culti-
var group of
C. melo
that includes crenshaw, casaba, and
other mixed melons. This fruit is also called “winter melon”
since it ripens slower than cantaloupe and is usually not
ready until autumn (Anon, 2011). The subspecies or vari-
ety nomenclature comes from the fact that a honeydew was
considered “inodorus” compared with most
C. melo
races.
Honeydew is an annual vine crop, grown for its sweet fruit
that is closely related to cantaloupe. However, unlike can-
taloupe, the honeydew fruit does not emit a musky odor
and its flesh is green, rather than orange, yellowish creamy,
or gold (Bertelsen et al., 1994). Honeydew is an Ameri-
can name for the French cultivar 'White Antibes' that was
grown for many years in southern France and Algeria for
the export markets (Stephens, 2009).
China, Turkey, Iran, Spain, and the United States are ma-
jor producers of melon (including cantalouope and honey-
dew), while Spain, Guatemala, and Costa Rica are leading
exporters. In the United States, honeydew production is
mainly in Arizona, Texas, and California.
The honeydew fruits are round to oval (with about 8
inches diameter) and weigh about 4-5 pounds. The fruit
rind is smooth, devoid of netting or ribs, and ranges from
greenish to yellow color. Honeydews have a good fla-
vor, having a thick, sweet, juicy flesh (Bertelsen et al.,
1994). Like cantaloupe, virtually all honeydews are used
fresh, with peak consumption occurring between June and
September; however, in the US market, honeydews are
available year round as imports fill the gap in domestic sup-
plies during the winter and spring (Bertelsen et al., 1994).
The composition and nutritional profile of honeydew fruit
is given in Table 28.5. Similar to cantaloupes, honeydews
are a low-calorie and low-sodium refreshing fruit.
Aromatic volatiles and sensory attributes, as reported by
Saftner et al. (2006), are shown in Table 28.4.
Juice and other products
Few studies have reported on the extraction and processing
of cantaloupe juice (Sharma et al., 2005; Wang et al., 2006;
Ma et al., 2010), juice concentrate (Galeb et al., 2002), or
fermented beverage (Hu et al., 2009). It is to be noted that
much of the work has been on mostly experimental basis,
and commercial processing of cantaloupe juice or juice
products has not been reported in the literature. Osmotic
dehydration of cantaloupe was reported by Shahidi et al.
(2007); osmotically dried cantaloupe pieces were shown
to exhibit acceptable sensory attributes. Preparation of a
peach-cantaloupe preserve was described by Parnell et al.
(2003).
Nutritional profile and health benefits
The composition and nutritional profile of cantaloupe fruit
is shown in Table 28.5. Cantaloupes are a low-calorie and
low-sodium refreshing fruit enjoyed by people of all ages.
Cantaloupe is high in potassium, beta-carotenes, and vita-
min A content. The data given here are for the fruit grown
in the United States; therefore some differences can be an-
Production practices and cultivars
Honeydew cultural practices are similar to those for can-
taloupe because both are closely related members of the
Cucumis
family. Generally, they have a similar growing
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