Studies on Shelf Life of ``Lateblue'' Highbush Blueberries
There is a considerable scope to mantain the quality and extend shelf-life of perishable and soft fruits such as strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries by developing and evolving packaging strategies. In this work a study on the packaging of blueberries in plastic film for short-to-medium term storage was carried out. Blueberries cv Lateblue were hand-picked from a commercial plantation and packaged in different barrier films. Four commercially available films were used as packaging materials: two micro-perforated (0.3 mm and 1 mm in diameter), a non-perforated and a macro-perforated (6 mm in diameter). All the samples were stored at 4 °C for 15 days. The benefits of small packages (consumer packs), were evaluated through chemical (total soluble solid content (TSS), titratable acidity and pH), visual (color intensity, surface shine, firmness by touch, intensity of odor, and overall appearance) and sensory (crispness, sweet taste, acidic taste, total flavor, and overall appreciation) evaluation. The berries packaged in micro-perforated (1 mm in diameter) and non-perforated film maintained better quality attributes (high TSS content and titratble acidity) throughout the cold storage. The non-perforated film maintained also berry crispness and a good intensity of flavor. Non and micro-perforated packaging films gave the best results and appeared to be a feasible practice in order to ensure good quality during medium-term storage of blueberries. Moreover nonperforated film treatment was the only treatment that reduced in little or no significant pathogen-induced decay during cold storage.