PRESTORAGE LOW-OXYGEN ATMOSPHERE TREATMENT REDUCES CHILLING INJURY SYMPTOMS IN FUERTE AVOCADO FRUIT

Prestorage treatment of avocado fruit (Persea americana Mill. cv. Fuer te) with a low-02 atmosphere (3% O2 + 97% N2) for 24 hours at 17C, sig nificantly reduced chilling injury (CI) symptoms after storage at 2C f or 3 weeks. Fruit softening was also delayed by this treatment. The tr eated fruit had lower respiration and ethylene production rates during storage at 2C and subsequently at 17C. Electrolyte leakage was signif icantly lower in peel disks from treated fruit. Reducing power, expres sed as total sulfhydryl groups, was higher in the peel and pulp of low -O2-treated fruit. The amount of peel chlorophyll was inversely correl ated with the severity of CI symptoms.