Effects of Cultivar, Postharvest Storage, Preprocessing Dip Treatments and Style of Pack on the Processing Quality of Strawberries

Abstract

Two cultivars of strawberries originally harvested for fresh market were held under 5 postharvest storage treatments and then dipped in one of 4 chemical treatments. The berries were sliced or left whole, dipped, and then processed by freezing or thermal processing. The processed product from ‘Cardinal’ was superior to that from ‘Sunrise’ in this study, regardless of the holding or dip treatment. ‘Cardinal’ berries could be utilized for processing initially and after storage for 4 days at 4°C and after 2 days at 21°; however, ‘Sunrise’ was acceptable only initially and up to 4 days at 4°. Dipping berries for 1 min in a 0.5% calcium lactate solution or a 0.5% Ca lactate plus 1% citric acid solution improved berry firmness and character. The Ca dips were more effective in firming sliced berries than in firming whole berries. The Howard mold count of the berries became a major limiting factor for many of the postharvest storage treatments.