Colour of hot paprika from the La Vera and Murcia regions packaged in different atmospheres during storage

Abstract

Summary This study compared the behaviour of hot paprika (Capsicum annuum L.) samples from the district of La Vera and the region of Murcia packaged in five different conditions during storage. The following five different packaging conditions were used in this study: modified atmosphere packaging with three different conditions (100% N2; 50% N2 and 50% CO2; and 100% CO2), vacuum packaging and traditional packaging (product packaging system without modifying the atmosphere). After the samples were packaged, they were stored for 8 months at room temperature (normal storage conditions). The following parameters were used to indicate the quality of the samples: Aw, ASTA colour, CIEL*a*b* colour parameters, and the composition of red and yellow compounds. The results indicate that the modified atmosphere packaging and vacuum packaging exerted a protective effect on the paprika quality characteristics regardless of the paprika origin. However, no clear differences were detected between the effect of vacuum packaging and the different modified atmosphere packaging conditions.

The Vacuum and Light-Avoided Packaging Ameliorate the Decline in Quality of Whole Chili during Storage

“…Tese were similar to previous studies. Ordonez-Santos et al [18] found paprika packed in CO 2 and under vacuum had higher capsanthin concentrations and ASTA values in both types of samples. Te whole chili in vacuum-packed bags had higher ASTA values compared with jute bags, and the loss of color was relatively higher in vacuum-packed bags under light exposure [17].…”

“…Te content of capsanthin and ASTA values are critical indexes to evaluate the color and storage quality of chili peppers [34][35][36]. However, a gradual discoloration [24], signifcantly decreases in a * , ASTA values and capsanthin content [18,20,24] were observed in all paprika samples during storage. Similar to the previous studies, this study found a general increase in L * and b * , while a * , capsanthin content, and ASTA values decreased with storage time in all groups (Figures 1 and 2).…”

“…Te red pepper contains a number of substances with antioxidant properties, such as carotenoids, capsaicinoids, phenolics, favonoids, and vitamins [12,47,48], which play an important role in protecting against oxidative damage caused by free radicals [38,49] and are essential for human health [2]. However, the carotenoids, phenolic compounds, and other antioxidants in chili peppers are susceptible to degrading by oxygen, light, temperature, moisture, and other factors during storage [10,17,18], which causes the reduction of antioxidant capacity [50]. Consistent with these studies, Figure 4 indicated that the TPC, TAC, DPPH, and ABTS scavenging capacity in peppers decreased signifcantly with the prolonging of storage time.…”

“…Vacuum packaging in polythene bags could maintain the quality of whole chilies for up to 24 months, especially under cold storage [17]. Paprika packed in CO 2 and under vacuum had higher capsanthin concentrations and extractable color (American Spice Trade Association, ASTA) values [18]. Modifed atmospheric packaging (MAP) could retain the stable content of phenolic compounds in peppers [19], and MAP and vacuum packaging with PP under refrigerated conditions could maintain the texture, color, ascorbic acid, and marketability of fresh bell peppers for 20 days [20].…”