Color Changes and Chilling Injury of Pink Tomatoes Held at Various Temperatures

Excerpts from the report: Each year a part of the tomato crop shipped for fresh use is harvested in the "pink" stage after some yellow or red has developed. Ripening does not progress uniformly in tomatoes on the vines, and fruits of various stages of ripeness are obtained even when the fruits are harvested frequently. Fruits of different stages of ripeness are sorted and packed in similar ranges. They may be shipped separately or all may be included in the same load. Pink tomatoes are at times also shipped in loads of mixed produce. Since these pink, or so-called vine-ripened, tomatoes are more perishable than those harvested mature green, one of the critical problems is to control ripening during transit. The purpose of this study was to determine (1) the effect of simulated transit temperatures on the rate of color change and final ripening and (2) whether short periods at relatively low temperatures, such as during transit in mixed loads of vegetables, would cause chilling injury