Comparative Effect of Melatonin and 1-Methylcyclopropene Postharvest Applications for Extending ‘Hayward’ Kiwifruit Storage Life

María Celeste Ruiz-Aracil, Fabián Guillén, Mihaela Iasmina Madalina Ilea, Domingo Martínez-Romero, José Manuel Lorente-Mento and Juan Miguel Valverde ()
Additional contact information
María Celeste Ruiz-Aracil: Postharvest Research Group of Fruit and Vegetables, Agro-Food and Agro-Environmental Research and Innovation Center (CIAGRO-UMH), University Miguel Hernández, Ctra. Beniel km. 3.2, 03312 Orihuela, Spain
Fabián Guillén: Postharvest Research Group of Fruit and Vegetables, Agro-Food and Agro-Environmental Research and Innovation Center (CIAGRO-UMH), University Miguel Hernández, Ctra. Beniel km. 3.2, 03312 Orihuela, Spain
Mihaela Iasmina Madalina Ilea: Postharvest Research Group of Fruit and Vegetables, Agro-Food and Agro-Environmental Research and Innovation Center (CIAGRO-UMH), University Miguel Hernández, Ctra. Beniel km. 3.2, 03312 Orihuela, Spain
Domingo Martínez-Romero: Postharvest Research Group of Fruit and Vegetables, Agro-Food and Agro-Environmental Research and Innovation Center (CIAGRO-UMH), University Miguel Hernández, Ctra. Beniel km. 3.2, 03312 Orihuela, Spain
José Manuel Lorente-Mento: Postharvest Research Group of Fruit and Vegetables, Agro-Food and Agro-Environmental Research and Innovation Center (CIAGRO-UMH), University Miguel Hernández, Ctra. Beniel km. 3.2, 03312 Orihuela, Spain
Juan Miguel Valverde: Postharvest Research Group of Fruit and Vegetables, Agro-Food and Agro-Environmental Research and Innovation Center (CIAGRO-UMH), University Miguel Hernández, Ctra. Beniel km. 3.2, 03312 Orihuela, Spain

Agriculture, 2023, vol. 13, issue 4, 1-13

Abstract: Kiwifruit, like many other fruits, is susceptible to dehydration, leading to texture changes and a loss of flavour during storage. Exposing kiwifruit to suboptimal temperatures can control these changes but can cause internal browning. Postharvest treatments with substances such as 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) are some of the most successful commercial technologies in the conservation of fruits and vegetables. In recent years, there has been a growing interest among researchers in alternative technologies based in postharvest treatments with plant growth regulators. In this sense, melatonin (MT) has been shown to improve fruit quality, extending shelf life. The aim of this study was to compare these two different technologies applied at postharvest to evaluate the impact on kiwifruit quality. Optimal 1-MCP fumigations and MT solutions were assayed on ‘Hayward’ kiwifruit under similar conditions. Quality parameters were evaluated at 14-day intervals during 84 days of cold storage plus 5 days at 20 °C. The results showed that both treatments were similarly effective in maintaining quality parameters such as weight loss, respiration, firmness, and acidity. Although 1-MCP treatments delayed the evolution of kiwifruit colour and chlorophyll degradation as compared to MT, MT treatments controlled chilling injury better than 1-MCP. This effect was not related to a greater cell membrane integrity since fruit batches treated with 1-MCP were the ones that showed the lowest electrolyte leakage level. In conclusion, both treatments maintained fruit quality and delayed ripening in a similar way. In this sense, the results suggest that MT immersion treatments could act as efficient delaying senescence as fumigations with 1-MCP maintaining kiwifruit quality during refrigerated storage.

Keywords: Actinidia deliciosa; melatonin; 1-MCP; quality; ripening; storage (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/13/4/806/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/13/4/806/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jagris:v:13:y:2023:i:4:p:806-:d:1112716

Access Statistics for this article

Agriculture is currently edited by Ms. Leda Xuan

More articles in Agriculture from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().