Magda Andréia Tessmer

Quality of mini tomatoes harvested at two maturity stages and kept chilled in three packages

The economic importance of small tomato fruits has been increased considerably due to the significant levels of lycopene and sugars. However, to achieve these compounds, the harvest is limited to a ripening stage demanded by consumers, which could reduce this marked period. Harvesting at an early stage and use of conservation techniques are desirable to amplify the marketing period. The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of small tomato fruits, Sweet Grape cultivar, harvested at two stages of ripening (light red and red), kept in three types of package (perforated PET, PEBD 30 μ and Vegetal Pack 18 μ) at a temperature of 20±1oC and a relative humidity (RH) of 85±5% during 20 days. During this period, gas composition inside the packaging (O 2 , CO 2 and ethylene), peel color, fresh mass loss, soluble solids content (SS), titratable acidity (TA), SS/TA and ascorbic acid levels were evaluated every 5 days. The lycopene content was determined at the beginning and the end of conservation. The experimental design was completely randomized in a split plot with four replications. Mass loss, peel color and gas composition were affected by both stage of harvest and package. The total SS/TA increased 4.74 during the conservation for two stages, regardless of package. The light red fruits reached after 20 days of conservation, mean levels of lycopene of 16.47 mg 100 g -1 and SS/TA of 18.43; on the other hand the red fruits achieved 15.30 mg 100 g -1 of lycopene and 16.80 of SS/TA. There was a mean increase of 8.4 mg 100 g -1 of lycopene in light red fruits, while in red fruits, the increase was 0.9 mg 100 g -1 . The PEDB film was the best to maintain the fresh mass and peel color, therefore it was indicated for the maintenance of these attributes. The Vegetal Pack film showed no advantage in relation to the PET perforated packaging.

Fresh cut yam stored under different temperatures

The objective of this study was to evaluate the microbiological, physiological and qualitative changes in fresh cut yam (Dioscorea alata) stored at different temperatures. The experimental design was completely randomized in factorial scheme 4x4, with four storage temperatures (5, 10, 15 and 20oC) and four evaluation periods (0, 3, 6 and 9 days after processing) with four replications. The microbiological analyzes were performed at 0, 3 and 9 days after processing. Fresh cut yam stored at 5oC kept respiration rate, ethylene production at low levels similar to those found in yam not processed and stored at 20oC. The weight loss, lightness and psicotrophic bacteria counting in fresh cut yam stored at 5oC were kept within the trading patterns until the third day.

Caqui—Diospyros kaki

Abstract The global persimmon production reached 5.190.324 tons in 2014 and the biggest persimmon producers in the world are China, Korea, Japan, Spain and Brazil. The persimmon tree belongs to family Ebenaceae and persimmon commercial cultivars are in the Diopyros kaki species, classified in pollination constant (PC) and pollination variant (PV) types. Both types are divided into astringent (A) and nonastringent (NA) according to the presence or absence of astringency in the ripe fruit. Persimmon is a climacteric fruit with low rates respiration and ethylene, able to promote changes in color, the firmness of pulp, carbohydrates, organic acids and soluble proanthocyanidins in nonastringent cultivars. In fruit of Astringent cultivars it is necessary to make astringency removal treatments after harvesting. These treatments are performed with ethanol or CO2, with the production of acetaldehyde, which promotes the polymerization of soluble proanthocyanidins. To retard the maturation and maintain quality, it is used blocker ethylene with 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) in conjunction with packaging, cold storage or a controlled atmosphere. The consumption of persimmons has grown to be a source of minerals, vitamin C and antioxidants, in addition to presenting potential for industrial products.

Sugarcane cells as origin of acid beverage floc in cane sugar

Brazil stands out as the largest producer of crystal sugar in the world, exporting much of its production to the soft drinks industry. However, the chemical composition of sugar may contain numerous compounds that promote the formation of acid beverage flocs (ABF), reducing product acceptance. This study aimed to identify the chemical composition of ABF using different analytical techniques. We could observe the ABF are formed by several chemical classes. Regarding the histochemical analysis, we observed the presence of cellular sugarcane tissues, which are not fully removed in sugarcane processing. Mineral compounds, such as silicon, were found in great amounts by the Scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive system (SEM/EDS) analysis. The mass spectrometry, high resolution mass by Q-ToF analysis and MALDI-MS allowed identification of compounds, such as p-hydroxybenzaldehyde, vanillin, triacontanoic acid, hexadecanoic acid, octadecanoic acid and n-octacosanoic acid, in the ABF composition. These compounds are widely found in vegetable tissues, confirming that the ABF are formed by tiny particles of plant cells of sugar cane.