‘LAETITIA’ PLUMS STORED IN CONTROLLED ATMOSPHERES COMBINED WITH INDUCTION OF MASS LOSS AND ETHYLENE MANEGEMENT

Abstract

ABSTRACT Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the relative effects of controlled atmosphere (CA) associated with 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP; 1.0 μL L−1), induction of mass loss (IML; 2%), and low ethylene (LE; <0.04 μL L−1 of C2H4) on the quality preservation of ‘Laetitia’ plums. In experiment 1 (2010), the treatments evaluated were cold storage (CS; 21.0 kPa O2 + <0.03 kPa CO2), CA1 (1 kPa O2 + 1 kPa CO2), CA1 + 1-MCP, CA1 + IML, and CA1 + LE. In experiment 2 (2011), the treatments evaluated were CS, CA2 (2 kPa O2 + 2 kPa CO2), CA2 + IML, and CA2 + 1-MCP. In both experiments, the fruit were stored at 0.5 ± 0.1°C and 96 ± 2% RH. CA storage delayed fruit ripening in both atmosphere conditions evaluated and reduced the internal browning of the ‘Laetitia’ plums, particularly in CA2. 1-MCP, LE, and IML had additional effects to CA1 on preserving flesh consistency. 1-MCP, irrespective of the CA condition, and IML, in CA1, reduced internal browning. CA1, regardless of the complementary technologies, reduced the incidence of decay and fruit cracking.