Effects of Hydrocooling Duration on the Postharvest Quality of Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.)
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.24843/Keywords:
ambient storage, field-heat removal, postharvest physiology, precooling, shelf lifeAbstract
Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) deteriorates rapidly when field heat is not removed after harvest. This study evaluated hydrocooling durations of 0, 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 min in water maintained at 16 °C, followed by 14 days of ambient storage. A single-factor completely randomized design with four replications per treatment was used. Weight loss, firmness, total soluble solids, vitamin C, carotenoid content, colour, and texture were evaluated. On day 14, the 15–25 min treatments produced lower weight loss, greater firmness, lower total soluble solids, and higher vitamin C than the untreated control. They also delayed carotenoid accumulation, colour development, and softening. Fifteen minutes produced quality outcomes comparable to the longer treatments with a shorter immersion time. Complete reporting of pulp-temperature reduction, repeated-measures analysis, water sanitation, and analytical methods is required before the protocol can be independently reproduced.
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