Storage Quality and Composition of Sweetpotato Roots after Quarantine Treatment Using Low Doses of X-ray Irradiation

Abstract

Sweetpotato [Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.] roots of three Hawaii-grown cultivars (`Mokuau', `Okinawan', and `Yoshida') were treated with 0, 200, or 400 Gy x-ray irradiation and stored for 12 weeks at 15 °C. The storage quality of nonirradiated and irradiated roots was compared for weight loss, sprouting, firmness, color, postharvest decay, and carbohydrate concentrations. Nonirradiated roots lost 3 to 4% weight during storage, whereas roots treated with 400 Gy lost 4.7% to 8.6% weight. Sprouting was negligible for all treatments. Storage tended to increase root firmness, while irradiation tended to decrease firmness. When all cultivars were averaged, sweetpotatoes treated with 400 Gy and stored for 12 weeks had the lowest starch concentrations and highest total sugar concentrations. Glucose and fructose concentrations were not affected by irradiation, but these sugars increased during storage. Sucrose concentrations of roots irradiated with 400 Gy were double those of nontreated roots after 12 weeks storage. The purple-fleshed cultivars, `Mokuau' and `Okinawan', retained good quality following irradiation and storage, but firmness decreased somewhat for roots treated with 400 Gy. The `Okinawan' sweetpotato is the primary export cultivar from Hawaii. For the white-fleshed cultivar, `Yoshida', postharvest decay adversely impacted the internal color, firmness, and overall quality of roots treated with 400 Gy and stored for 12 weeks.