Strawberry Variety Influences the Effectiveness of Postharvest Treatment with Gaseous Ozone: Impact on the Physicochemical, Microbiological, and Bioactive Properties of the Fruit

Abstract

The aim of this research was to evaluate the influence of strawberry variety on the effectiveness of ozone application on the harvested fruit during 12 days of storage. Batches (400 g) of strawberries of the San Andreas (SA) and Camino Real (CR) varieties were stored at 10 ± 0.2 °C and exposed to gaseous ozone (0, 0.3, and 1.0 ppm) for 24 h. After the ozone exposure, the strawberries continued to be stored under refrigeration until the end of the experiment. Samples were taken daily and measurements were carried out on their physicochemical properties (weight loss, hardness, color, pH, and total soluble solids), microbiological profile (mesophilic aerobes, molds, and yeasts), bioactive compounds (total phenolic compounds and total anthocyanins), and antioxidant capacity. The obtained experimental kinetics were modeled using a first-order kinetic model. Independent of the strawberry variety, the 0.3 ppm ozone treatment generally showed the best results for most of the quality parameters evaluated. On the other hand, strawberries exposed to 1.0 ppm suffered some negative effects on fruit preservation, mainly regarding their physicochemical properties. Importantly, the CR variety presented less negative effects of gaseous ozone application compared to SA, especially in terms of weight loss, color, hardness, and anthocyanins.