ISHS Acta Horticulturae 464: International Postharvest Science Conference Postharvest 96
THE EFFECTS OF CULTURE PRACTICE AND STORAGE TEMPERATURE ON QUALITY AND FLAVOR VOLATILES OF GREENHOUSE TOMATOES |
| Authors: | W.C. Lin, G.S. Block |
| Abstract:
Greenhouse tomatoes are commercially produced in soilless culture in British Columbia. Fruit are harvested at breaker stage every 1 to 3 days. This study was to examine the influence of pre-harvest factors and storage conditions on flavor quality of fresh market tomato. Elevated electrical conductivity (EC) of the nutrient solution resulted in high soluble solid (SS) and high titratable acidity (TA), but did not affect levels of volatiles. Volatile compounds were collected, measured, and analyzed by GC-MS. In this study, only 10 compounds were chosen to be analyzed as estimates of tomato flavor. Volatiles increased as fruit ripened. Tomato volatile formation is closely related to fruit coloration. Such a correlation is complicated by storage temperatures. At 20°C, room-ripening progressed the same as vine-ripening. At 13°C or 4°C storage, both coloration and volatile formation slowed down, and the correlation became weak or even non-existent. The results indicated that the commercial practice is justified in that tomatoes are harvested at breaker stage and subsequently handled at 10–13°C. Culture modifications, such as high EC of nutrient solution or delayed harvest beyond breaker stage, did not benefit tomato flavor development. | |
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