SHORT WAVE INFRA-RED RADIATION AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO THE HOT WATER BATH TO CONTROL POSTHARVEST DECAY IN MANGOES

A postharvest treatment of mangoes consisting of a 5 minute hot water dip (50°C) followed by a 20 second ambient temperature prochloraz dip is the conventional method used to ensure adequate control of postharvest diseases.
This treatment is time consuming and represents a bottle neck in the packhouse.
Shortwave infra-red (IR) radiation has long been recognized as being a highly efficient form of heating.
The effect of IR radiation was therefore compared with the commercially used hot water treatment, for the control of postharvest diseases on mango.
Three minute exposure to IR was found to be as effective as the commercially used five minute hot water treatment in controlling anthracnose (Colletotrichum gloeosporioides) and soft brown rot (Nattrassia mangiferae) on seven mango cultivars.
There were no significant differences between IR and hot water treatments where fruit quality was concerned.
The IR treatment is however cheaper and faster than the hot water treatment.

V International Mango Symposium

W.C. Saaiman

Nattrassia mangiferae, Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, anthracnose, soft brown rot, fruit quality, prochloraz

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.1997.455.98