Prediction of macadamia shelf life and factors affecting long-term storage

South African macadamia kernel is a high value export product.
At present the industry does not have a specific test for establishing sell-by or use-by dates for export kernel.
The current work showed that pre-storage peroxide value determination and an accelerated oxidation test both have potential to serve as a predictor for shelf life.
However, this appears to be more suitable for kernel pieces than whole kernels, indicating that further calibration of the method is required.
It was also shown that while kernel quality varies considerably between cultivars, this variation is not directly related to the total proportion of unsaturated fatty acids in the kernel samples.
While cis-linoleic acid appears to contribute somewhat to oxidative stability, further work is required to determine the other factors contributing to shelf life.

XXXI International Horticultural Congress (IHC2022): International Symposium on Postharvest Technologies to Reduce Food Losses

M. Penter

fatty acid, oxidation, peroxide, Rancimat, nut

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2023.1364.22