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Alleviation of Postharvest Chilling Injury in Sweet Pepper Using Salicylic Acid Foliar Spraying Incorporated with Caraway Oil Coating Under Cold Storage

Summary

This research demonstrates a natural method to extend the shelf life of sweet peppers using salicylic acid and caraway oil treatments. The combination helps prevent cold damage during refrigerated storage while maintaining pepper quality. This has important implications for reducing food waste and improving food preservation. Impacts on everyday life: • Longer-lasting fresh peppers in home refrigerators • Reduced food waste and economic losses • Natural food preservation without synthetic chemicals • Better quality produce for consumers • More sustainable food storage solutions

Background

Sweet pepper is an important fruit crop in tropical and subtropical regions, valued as a source of antioxidants, vitamins, carotenoids, flavonoids, and phenolic acids. However, sweet peppers are susceptible to chilling injury (CI) when stored at temperatures below 7-10°C, leading to significant postharvest losses. While low-temperature storage is commonly used to extend shelf life, methods are needed to reduce CI damage during cold storage.

Objective

To evaluate the effectiveness of pre-harvest salicylic acid (SA) foliar spraying combined with postharvest caraway oil coating in reducing chilling injury and maintaining quality of sweet peppers during cold storage at 4±2°C for 60 days.

Results

The combination of 3 mM SA foliar spray and 0.6% caraway oil coating significantly reduced chilling injury to 14.36% compared to 93.33% in control fruits. This treatment also showed the best results in maintaining fruit quality parameters including reduced weight loss (79.43%), preserved firmness (30%), and minimal changes in pH (6%), TSS (17%), and TA (32%). The treatment increased antioxidant enzyme activities while reducing electrolyte leakage, MDA content, decay incidence and maintaining capsaicin levels.

Conclusion

The incorporation of pre-harvest SA foliar spraying (3 mM) with postharvest caraway oil coating (0.6%) effectively reduced chilling injury and maintained quality of sweet peppers during 60 days of cold storage. This combined treatment can be considered a practical solution to improve quality and marketability of sweet peppers during extended cold storage periods.
  • Published in:Frontiers in Plant Science,
  • Study Type:Experimental Study,
  • Source: 10.3389/fpls.2022.999518
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