Bruise susceptibilities of kiwifruit as affected by impact and fruit properties

Abstract

Kiwifruit bruise damage is a common postharvest disorder that substantially reduces fruit quality and marketability. Fruit bruise cause tissue softening and make them more susceptible to undesired agents such as diseases-inducing agents. Factors that affect kiwifruit bruise susceptibility such as impact properties and fruit properties were investigated. Two bruise prediction models were constructed for the damage susceptibility of kiwifruit (measured by absorbed energy) using multiple linear regression analyses. Kiwifruits were subjected to dynamic loading by means of a pendulum at three levels of impact. Significant effects of acoustic stiffness, temperature and the radius of curvature and some interactions on bruising were obtained at 5% probability level.