Firmness of each fruit was first evaluated subjectively by using two trained test panels. The test panel determined firmness of bell pepper by recording the degree of pod yield to moderately-applied finger pressure and scoring on the following scale: 5 = very firm, no yield; 4 = firm, slight yield; 3 = moderately firm, moderate yield; 2 = slightly firm, slight resistance; and 1 = flaccid, no resistance (Miller et al., 1986).