The Effect of Chlorine Dioxide and Chitosan/Essential Oil Coatings on the Safety and Quality of Fresh Blueberries

摘要

Blueberries are high-value fruit having strong antioxidant capacity and health-promoting benefits. Controlled-release of CI0_2 pads and chitosan coating incorporated with 0.5% of carvacrol (CAR) or Irans-cinnamaldehyde (ECIN) were applied to fresh blueberries to preserve their quality and ensure microbial safety during postharvest storage. Fruit firmness and microbial populations were monitored during storage. There were approximately a 2 log reduction in the population of bacteria and yeasts/molds in the blueberries after eight days of storage at 10 °C when comparing any of treated fruit with the control. Controlled-release CI0_2 pads and chitosan coating incorporated with 05% of CAR or ECIN also maintained the firmness of blueberries. Our resultssuggest that controlled-release C10_2 and chitosan-essential oil coatings are effective in extending the shelf life of fresh blueberries.