3.2. Firmness
Firmness of cherry tomatoes stored in modified atmosphere
package (MAP) for 25 days at 5 C is shown in Fig. 2. The
compressive force decreased over storage for samples stored under
MAP and the control. For 10% deformation, there was a reduction of
1.19 N in compressive force for samples stored in packs containing
5% O2, 5% CO2, and 90% N2 for 25 days, while the control samples
showed a reduction of 2.09 N in compression force during the
storage period. These results indicate that the modified atmosphere
reduced fruit softening and maintained firmness throughout
storage compared to the control.
weight loss obtained in this study using MAP is lower than
tomatoes coated with hydroxypropyl methylcellulose (HPMC)
containing antifungal agents stored the same temperature without
MAP.