INTERMITTENT WARMING REDUCES CHILLING INJURY AND DECAY OF TOMATO FRUIT

Mature-green and early breaker tomato fruit (Lycopersicon esculentum M ill) cv 'Dario F-150' treated with 0.5g liter(-1) iprodione were store d at 6, 9 and 12 degrees C for 28 days. Intermittent warmings for 1 da y at 20 degrees C were applied every week on all fruits. They were sub jected to post-storage ripening for 4 days at 20 degrees C. On tomatoe s from both maturity stages, intermittent warming during four cycles o f 6 days at 9 degrees C and 1 day at 20 degrees C prevented developmen t of chilling injury and decay, enhanced surface color and loss of fir mness (compared with continuous 9 degrees C storage), delayed shriveli ng, and resulted in the lowest total losses at the end of storage and at the end of post-storage ripening.