ruising significantly affected the chemical
composition of pericarp and locular tissues of
tomato fruit. Vitamin C content was about 15%
lower in bruised locular tissue than unbruised
fruit (Moretti et al., 1998). AA retention in shred-ded iceberg lettuce is affected by the nature of the
slicing method used. Higher levels of AA were
retained in samples that had been prepared by
manually tearing the lettuce into strips. Lettuce
shredded using a sharp knife retained initially
18% less AA than the torn samples. The retention
of AA in the products sliced by machine was
25 – 63% lower than lettuce shredded by manual
tearing. Using a blunt machine blade resulted in
10% lower AA levels than when a sharp blade was
used (Barry-Ryan and O’Beirne, 1999). Excessive