Effects of packaging and ozone treatments on quality preservation in purple figs

The present study was conducted to investigate the effects of different package types and ozone treatments on post-harvest quality of figs. Three different package types (classical-type, modified atmosphere –MAP, consumer-type) and different ozone treatments (0, 5, 10 and 15 minutes) were used in experiments. Purple figs grown in Tekkeköy town of Samsun province were used as the experimental material of the study. Fruits harvested at optimum harvest period were subjected to pre-cooling for a day and then stored in a cold storage at 4°C temperature and 85–90% relative humidity. At the beginning of cold storage and each week of storage, fruits removed from the storage were subjected to weight loss, water soluble dry matter content, titratable acidity, wrinkle, leakage, mold spots, peeling and degustation analyses. Current findings revealed that MAP and 10 or 15-minute ozone treatments had positive impacts on weight loss prevention in figs. While there were not significant differences in other characteristics of treatments, 10 and 15-minute ozone treatments retarded mold spots and leakage in consumer and modified packages.