article · Horticultural Science
Postharvest treatment with salicylic acid helps preserve fruit quality and enhance nutritional value in apricots during prolonged refrigeration. Testing three concentrations across three apricot cultivars stored at one degree Celsius for up to twenty-eight days demonstrated clear preservation benefits. Treating fruit with one or two millimoles per litre of salicylic acid significantly diminished chilling injury and decay. These concentrations also curbed membrane electrolyte leakage and the loss of ascorbic acid during the storage period. In addition, treated apricots retained markedly higher levels of total polyphenols, carotenoids, and overall antioxidant capacity compared to untreated controls, which suffered notable declines in these compounds. Overall, salicylic acid applications successfully extend the storability of several apricot cultivars under cold conditions.
Apricots are highly perishable stone fruits that deteriorate rapidly and suffer chilling injury during cold distribution, leading to substantial postharvest waste. Applying salicylic acid offers an effective way to protect fruit integrity while preserving key dietary antioxidants. This approach can help supply chains reduce storage losses and provide consumers with longer-lasting, nutritionally rich fruit.
This research provides an applied, tested treatment protocol relevant to commercial packhouses, fruit exporters, and cold-storage operators handling apricots. The method has been demonstrated in laboratory cold storage across three commercial cultivars. Moving toward commercial use would require validating the treatment in commercial-scale postharvest dipping or spraying systems, assessing cost efficiency, and confirming local regulatory approvals for salicylic acid treatments on fresh produce.
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The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of three salicylic acid (SA) concentrations (0.5, 1 and 2 mmol/l) on 7 fruit quality attributes of three apricot cultivars ('Flavor Cot', 'Jumbo Cot' and 'Bergeron') during cold storage (at 1°C for 7, 14, 21 and 28 days). Applications of 1 or 2 mmol/l SA significantly reduced chilling injury and fruit decay of apricot fruit as well as membrane electrolyte leakage and ascorbic acid content. Fruits treated with SA resulted in high total polyphenolic content, antioxidant capacity and carotenoids content while these parameters significantly decreased in non-treated control fruits. Overall, our results showed that SA prolonged the storability of fruits of three different apricot cultivars during cold storage.
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DOI: 10.17221/177/2015-hortsci
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