Aplicação de revestimentos e refrigeração na conservação de pitaia (Hylocereus undatus) pós-colheita

Abstract

The pitaia (Hylocereus undatus), exotic fruit and with different characteristics, currently stands in trade for their beauty and pleasant taste, in addition, pitaia also has attributes like, mild flavor, refreshing, has aphrodisiac properties as well as functional where the seed oil has a laxative effect. The same does not have great production in Brazil and is still becoming familiar with consumers enjoying fruits with these characteristics. By presenting a shelf life 6 - 8 days, generates a short period for consumption and sale, which worries the products fail to guarantee the product for a longer time period available to consumers, and many fruits are damaged, disorders and post losses-harvest. The post-harvest losses and generate great damage to the lower availability and higher consumer prices. Thus, the aim of this study was first to evaluate the physical and chemical characteristics of pitaia fruit with application of different coatings and subjected to two temperatures and room temperature during storage of fruits. The pitaia fruits were initially approved at the Laboratory of Food Biochemistry/UEM, selected, washed, sanitized with a solution of 1 % sodium hypochlorite, dried and subsequently treated with coatings based on cassava starch at 2 %, gelatin solution to 2 % and the preservative solution (1 % ascorbic acid, 0.5 % citric acid, 0.7 % sodium chloride and 0.25 % calcium chloride) for 2 minutes immersion, and also the control group, no treatment. After application of the coating and drying the fruit, they were stored under refrigeration (8 ºC±1 and 13 ºC±1) and room temperature (25 ºC±2) and evaluated for 25 days of storage at 5 in 5 days. The analyzes carried out during the period of storage of fruits were: pH, titratable acidity, soluble solids, ratio (SS / TA), peel color (parameters L*, a *, C*, Hueº), fresh color (parameters L*, C*and Hueº), reducing sugar in glucose, total sugar, total phenolics, antioxidant activity and weight loss. After evaluation of the fruit, it was noticeable that the fruits treated with gelatin coatings and conservative solution presented the best appearance during storage and longer shelf life. In the packed temperatures, cooling 8 ºC was the best temperature for maintaining fruit, where they lasted up to 25days. But at temperatures of 13 °C and room temperature (25 °C) fruit stayed fresh for use on 20 days and10 days, respectively. The use of coatings showed variation for physico-chemical parameters of pH, soluble solids, phenolic compounds and mass loss, but for the rest it was not noticed in the same range by applying these treatments, it was possible to maintain the quality of fruit for a longer period of time.