Ellagic acid is a phenolic compound which occurs naturally in strawberries. Interest in ellagic acid has increased during the past few years owing to its properties as a micronutrient. The objective of this study was to determine the ellagic acid content in strawberries compared with that in other common fruits and to evaluate its variability, the effects of ripening stage, and the tissue and seasonal variability in selected cultivars widely grown in Argentina. Strawberries showed significantly higher levels of ellagic acid than many other fruits of economic importance, ranging from 0.16 to 2.07 mg g −1 dry weight. The ellagic acid content was highest in green fruit, intermediate in mid-ripe fruit and lowest in full-ripe fruit. Cultivars 'Chandler' and 'Camarosa' contained the highest amounts of ellagic acid in strawberries with edible value (0.78 and 0.70 mg g −1 dry weight respectively), while 'Oso Grande' and 'Milsei' exhibited the lowest (0.35 and 0.31 mg g −1 dry weight respectively). Moreover, the level of this phytochemical was found to be higher when considering pulp with achenes compared with pulp without achenes.

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Strawberries represent an important source of bioactive compounds due to their vitamin C and phenolic compound levels, which present high antioxidant effects, beneficial for the maintenance of consumer’s health. Argentina is the second largest strawberry producer in The Common Market of the Southern Cone (MERCOSUR), covering the main export destinations of Argentinian strawberries, i.e., Canada, United States, and European Union. Information about the bioactive compound occurrence and antioxidant capacity of these fruits is scarce or not available. Health related compounds of strawberry cultivars (Camarosa and Selva) from different zones of Argentina were investigated. Vitamin C content was in the same range for both studied cultivars. However, Camarosa strawberries, which are the most cultivated, consumed, and exported berries in Argentina, presented higher total phenolic and anthocyanins content, and consequently better in vitro antioxidant capacity. Moreover, there were differences in the occurrence and concentration in the phenolic compound profiles for both cultivars. Camarosa cultivar presented higher content of anthocyanidins, and Selva showed higher total ellagic acid content. The research shows that Argentina’s strawberries are an interesting source of bioactive compounds comparable to those in other parts of the world.

The effects of packaging and storage at 3C in a refngerated case on quality changes of minimally processed cabbage were studied. Shredded cabbage samples were packaged in three f o m : bags of monooriented polypropylene film (OPP bags) and polyethylene trays overwrapped with a multilayer polyolefin (RD106-PE tray) or with a plasticized PVC film (PVC-PE tray). A11 types of package effectively controlled the weight loss. The modified atmosphere in PVCand RD106-PE trays did not change more than 3 % as compared with normal atmosphere levels. However, in OPP bags, 0, reached 2% and CO, increased to approximately 13% after 3 days. The microbiological quality during the storage period for all types of packaging was satisfactory. OPP samples were significantly better ( p < 0.05) in general appearance, wilting and browning but developed an off-odor. No off-odor was detected in samples packaged in PVC and RD106-PE trays. Shelf life for the three packaging f o m was estimated.

Disinfection of shredded lettuce by washing is an essential operation to eliminate foreign matter and cellular fluids produced by cutting, and to reduce the initial microbial contamination. The response surface methodology was used to evaluate the effect of initial chlorine concentration (50-150 ppm), water-to-produce ratio (20-50 L kg )1 ) and time (2-8 min) on the depletion of total and available chlorine and also the microbial count reduction on shredded lettuce. The predictive models obtained, validated through additional confirmatory experiments, were shown to be adequate and could be used as a way of improving the operation.