Postharvest color development of strawberries: Influence of maturity, temperature and light

Relationship between total solid content and red, green and blue colour intensity of strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa Duch.) fruits

“…Both (R+G)/I and R/I ratio were poorly correlated (R 2 = 0.35 and 0.35 rspectively) with TSS ( Figure 04 and Table 05). Kalt et al, (1993) reported that white strawberries become red during the storage without sufficient change in sugar. Therefore, RGB colour intensity based total solid content determination method can be used at harvesting time of strawberry fruit due to it include visible as well as NIR spectra.…”

Physicochemical changes during strawberry development in the field compared with those that occur in harvested fruit during storage

“…In a recent study using strawberries harvested from white to red color stages, Miszczak et al 13 reported that, when held at 15 • C after harvest, pink and white strawberries develop full red color after 4 and 6 days, respectively, and at 20 • C color development was greater than at 10 • C. In the present study, the color of strawberries harvested HC and TQC became closer to the color of the fruit harvested at TQC and FRC, respectively, after 8 days at 1 • C. Thus, the degree of color development seems to be dependent on storage time and temperature. 6,7,11,13 In the present study, the storage temperature (1 • C) used might have delayed red color development. However, if placed on a retail display at 20 • C, the TQC strawberries would probably develop acceptable red color within 1 day.…”

“…Smith and Heinze 6 reported that showing color, onehalf, and three-quarters colored strawberries stored at 21 • C were able to develop full red color in about 4, 3 and 2 days, respectively. However, Kalt et al 11 observed that red color development in white strawberries held at 5 or 10 • C was still incomplete after 8 days of storage. In a recent study using strawberries harvested from white to red color stages, Miszczak et al 13 reported that, when held at 15 • C after harvest, pink and white strawberries develop full red color after 4 and 6 days, respectively, and at 20 • C color development was greater than at 10 • C. In the present study, the color of strawberries harvested HC and TQC became closer to the color of the fruit harvested at TQC and FRC, respectively, after 8 days at 1 • C. Thus, the degree of color development seems to be dependent on storage time and temperature.…”

Postharvest Handling of Berries

“…However, the changes in sugar and acid content of these unripe fruits are not enough to make them suitable for fresh consumption [4]. On the other hand, Krüger et al [7] reported that suitability for selling raspberries declined rapidly with increased ripening stage, and thus, the fruit should not be stored and must be sold and consumed immediately after picking.…”

“…What's more, berries are considered non-climacteric fruit, which implies that they need to be harvested at, or near to, full maturity as most of them will not continue to ripen normally once detached, and eating quality will not improve after harvest. In some cases, they can color in storage but if they are harvested too early, texture, sweetness, and acidity fail to fully develop [4].…”