Effects of different postharvest applications on storage period and quality of whole and fresch-cut tomatoes

This study was carried out in Cukurova University Agriculture Faculty Horticulture Department for two years 2005 and 2006. In the research, effects of different applications on storage period and quality factors of fresh-cut and whole tomatoes cv. Zorro harvested at different maturity dates were investigated. For this aim, commodities harvested at mature green and pink mature stages were subjected to treatments control, 125, 250, 500 and 1000 nl/l 1-MCP, 2% and 4% CaCl2 and MAP (Modified Atmosphere Packing). After applications, samples were stored at 12 °C for 35 days. Fresh-cut samples, also harvested at pink and red mature stages, were sliced with a 7 mm thickness after dipping into 100 ppm sodium hypocloride. The slices, discarding the first and the final ones, were immersed into 1% and 2% doses of CaCl2 and stored at 2 °C for 14 days in MAP placed within polystren pots.Weight loss, firmness/elasticity, color, total solible solids (TSS), titretable acid (TA), TSS/TA, ethylene content, lycopene, chlorophyll, vitamin C, polygalactronase activity, reducing sugar, decay and leakage parameters were investigated with the intervals of 7 days for whole and 2 days for fresh-cut samples.At the end of the study, it was found that 500 and 1000 nl/l 1-MCP doses delayed the maturity and prolonged the storage duration keeping quality attributes in whole tomatoes. Better results in weight loss and elasticity were obtained from modified atmosphere packed commodities. In fresh-cut tomatoes, 1% concentration of CaCl2 was effective upon keeping the quality, while Modified Atmosphere Packing was the best method for diminishing the decay.