Detrimental effects of detergent in the development of mango skin browning

The term mango skin browning covers a range of postharvest blemishes affecting mango fruit. Skin browning is a major fruit quality problem, causing the downgrading of product on Australian markets. Etching and lenticel spotting are two of th more prevalent forms of browning. Etching consisting of numerous small dark flecks and lenticel spotting is a dark halo of tissue around the lenticels. To determine which points in the harvesting and postharvest handling operations contribute most to these blemishes, mango handling systems were investigated on several Australian farms during the 1994 and 1995 seasons. The operations that contributed most to etching and lenticel spotting were those associated with the detergentl desapping oppressions and hot dips. Laboratory investigations into the effect of detergent on mango skin showed that detergent alone at commercial rates could cause etching and lenticel spotting Etching appeared to be caused by the aided entry of aqueous solutions into the epidermis and underlying cells through small fissures in the cuticle. These fissures usually occur in the center of cuticular platelets as they subdivide or at the junctions between platelets. It seems that detergents can be a major contributor to lenticel spotting and forms of browning such as etching. The presence of detergent in the harvest/postharvest handling system may be causing as much harm as good to mango fruit quality. © ISHS