Sustainable Postharvest Treatments for Prolonging Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L.) Shelf Life by Minimizing the Development of Physiological Disorders

Abstract

Asparagus (Asparagus officinalis L.) is a non-climacteric vegetable, well-known for its nutritional properties. Asparagus is consumed either fresh, frozen, or processed into canned food. Fresh asparagus has a short shelf life due to its high respiration rates, which results in asparagus quality loss. Asparagus quality loss is also associated with the development of physiological disorders (i.e., stem discoloration, bract opening, and toughening) during postharvest storage. The current study reviews various sustainable postharvest treatments that can be applied to minimize asparagus postharvest losses by controlling the development of physiological disorders. The mechanisms of action of sustainable treatments and the mechanisms involved in physiological disorder development are comprehensively discussed. Packaging, edible coatings, washing with environmentally and human-friendly compounds, storage in a controlled atmosphere, heat treatment, ultrasound treatment, and electrostatic atomized water particle treatments can successfully maintain asparagus quality. Multidisciplinary studies are encouraged to investigate the mechanism of action of sustainable treatments.

Keywords

lignification; chlorophyll; bract opening; violet asparagus; white asparagus; perishable; toughening; respiration; storage conditions; discoloration; feathering

Published in

ACS food science & technology
2023, volume: 3, number: 10, pages: 1617-1631
Publisher: AMER CHEMICAL SOC

SLU Authors

• Papoutsis, Konstantinos

  • University College Dublin

UKÄ Subject classification

Food Science

Publication identifier

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acsfoodscitech.3c00319

Permanent link to this page (URI)

https://res.slu.se/id/publ/131934