Postharvest quality of papaya fruit wrapped with polyvinyl chloride film added with silver

Abstract

The main goal of this research was to evaluate the postharvest quality during storage of papaya wrapped with polyvinyl chloride containing silver. Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy and atomic absorption spectroscopy were employed for the film characterization. For the postharvest experiments, unwrapped fruits were compared to individually wrapped ones in both conventional polyvinyl chloride film and polyvinyl chloride film containing silver and stored under two conditions (10 days at 15°C, and 2 days at 22°C to simulate market conditions). The physicochemical analyzes, including soluble solids, titratable acidity, ratio, pH, ascorbic acid, weight loss, firmness and color were performed every two days of storage, while microbiological analyzes were performed on the 1st and 10th day of storage. Sensory analysis was carried on the last day of storage. Physicochemical analyses showed that fruits wrapped with polyvinyl chloride films presented a lower weight loss compared to than unwrapped fruits. These results were in accordance with sensory analysis. More importantly, papaya wrapped with polyvinyl chloride film containing silver kept papaya peel green for longer time causing a delay in ripening, indicating its potential to extend postharvest shelf-life of papaya and reduce postharvest losses.