EVOLUTION OF COLOR DURING THE RIPENING OF SELECTED VARIETIES OF PAPRIKA PEPPER (CAPSICUM-ANNUUM-L)

For the first time the evolution of the color of 13 paprika pepper var ieties, some of them viiith chlorophyll-retaining genes, is studied, f rom the moment the fruit is considered completely formed until harvest ing, i.e., during ripening. The final quality of each variety was eval uated by determining the extractable color by the American Spice Trade Association (ASTA) and the tint. The use of the chromatic attributes L, a*, and b* suggested by the Commission Internationale de l'Eclaira ge (CIE), i.e., of the CIELAB space, made it possible to follow the ev olution of color which takes place during fruit ripening and to identi fy the chlorophyll-retaining varieties. Saturation (S) was the most s uitable attribute for distinguishing the different phases of ripening.