The impact of gamma irradiation and storage on the physicochemical properties of tomato fruits in Ghana

Abstract

Objectives: Tomato is a popular fruit that makes significant contributions to human nutrition for its content of sugars, acids, vitamins, minerals, lycopene, and other constituents. The fruit, however, has a short shelf life due to its climacteric nature. In view of this, an experiment was conducted to determine the effect of postharvest treatment on the physicochemical properties of fresh tomato fruits. Materials and Methods: Freshly harvested tomato fruits were subjected to 0, 1, 2, 3, and 4 kGy gamma radiation and stored at 10 ± 1°C and 28 ± 1°C. Parameters analysed during the study include pH, total titratable acidity, weight loss, total solids, and moisture content of the sample. Results: At both storage temperatures, results of the analyses were in the range of 2.80%-38.67% for weight loss, 0.23%-0.51% for total titratable acidity, 3.5%-5.0% for total soluble solids, 94.43%- 96.53% for moisture content, and pH was generally low in the samples stored at 10 ± 1°C. Generally, gamma irradiation had an effect on the total soluble solids, total titratable acids, pH values, and moisture content and physiological weight loss at both storage temperatures. Conclusion: From the study, storing Burkina variety at a low temperature preserves the tomato fruits better than storing them at ambient temperature.