Control of bitter pit in apples with lecithin and calcium

Abstract

The incidence of bitter pit in ‘Cox’s Orange Pippin' apples was halved when the apples were dipped after harvest in solutions containing 2.5% CaCl2or Ca(NO3)2Addition of egg lecithin to the dips further reduced the incidence of the disorder (to less than one quarter of that in water-dipped controls). Lecithin addition also alleviated the damage often associated with calcium dips and improved control of two other physiological disorders, breakdown and water core. A dip containing lecithin alone was relatively ineffective. It is suggested that lecithin may assist the movement of applied calcium into apples. © 1975 Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.