A global visual method for measuring the deterioration of strawberries in MAP

Area of Science:

• Food Science
• Postharvest Technology
• Quality Assessment

Background:

• Evaluating strawberry quality post-storage involves time-consuming sensory, chemical, and decay analyses.
• Current methods often rely on counting spoiled strawberries, which can be inaccurate.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop a single, efficient visual measurement for assessing strawberry quality changes during storage.
• To reduce the number of analyses required for quality evaluation in Modified Atmosphere Packaging (MAP).

Main Methods:

• A protocol and deterioration grid were created to evaluate surface deterioration over time.
• The method considers visual changes like color, texture softening, and microorganism development.
• Deterioration kinetics were established for strawberries under MAP and non-MAP conditions.

Main Results:

• The developed method provides a global measurement of strawberry deterioration.
• A percentage of surface deterioration measurement proved more accurate than counting rotten strawberries.
• The protocol mimics consumer-at-a-glance quality assessment.

Conclusions:

• This novel visual assessment offers a breakthrough for efficient strawberry quality monitoring.
• The method provides a more accurate and consumer-centric approach to evaluating stored strawberry quality.
• It simplifies the assessment of visual quality changes, reducing analytical burden.