Influence of Mealiness on the Firmness of Apples after Harvest

Abstract

Changes in flesh firmness and mealiness during storage were investigated in 24 apple [Malus ×sylvestris (L.) Mill. var. domestica (Borkh.) Mansf.] cultivars and selections (genotypes) up to 40 days after harvest under 20 ± 2 °C and 85% ± 5% relative humidity storage conditions. Flesh firmness was measured using a penetrometer, while mealiness was quantified by measuring the degree of cell separation in tissue induced by shaking discs of tissue in a sucrose solution. According to the relationship between the change in firmness and mealiness, the genotypes can be divided into four groups: those that did not soften and remained hard and nonmealy during storage; those that softened without mealiness; those that softened with slight mealiness; and those that softened with mealiness. Firmness decreased below 30 N in fruit that softened with mealiness, and the minimum firmness during storage was correlated with the degree of mealiness at 30 days of storage. The rate of softening was the highest in fruit that softened with mealiness. Therefore, it was concluded that, by measuring the firmness and changes in firmness that take place during storage, the genotypes resulting in softening with mealiness and those that result in softening without mealiness could be identified.