Effect of modified atmosphere storage on the shelf life of banana 'Sucrier'

摘要

We investigated the effects of modified atmosphere (MA) packaging on the quality of the banana cultivar Sucrier, its shelf life, and its content of sugar and dopamine. Peel browning is correlated with dopamine levels. Mature green bananas were treated with 500 ppm ethephon and stored for 24 h at 25degreesC as a ripening treatment. Bananas with stage 3 peels (more green than yellow) were used for the experiments. The sugar content of the pulp and the dopamine content in the peel increased and decreased during storage for several days at 20degreesC, respectively. PVC packaging prevented decrease in dopamine content but delayed the increase in the sugar level. The shelf life of bananas determined by senescent peel spotting was 6-7 d in PVC packaging, compared with 3-4 d in the control. Packaging bananas with MA using polyethylene (PE) bags (0.03 mm) at 20degreesC was unsuitable for prolonging shelf life because it inhibited ripening and resulted in a flavour of fermentation.