Effects of aminoethoxyvinylglycine treatment by vacuum infiltration method on postharvest storage and shelf life of tomato fruit

• 1000 mg L−1 of AVG at −30 kPa was optimal treatment to delay tomato fruit ripening.
• Vacuum infiltrated AVG delayed changes in color and firmness of tomato during storage.
• AVG treatment provided 20 d of storage at 12 °C plus 2 d of shelf life at 20 °C.

The aim of this study was to determine effects of postharvest aminoethoxyvinylglycine (AVG) treatment using vacuum infiltration method on retardation of ripening, storage and shelf life of tomato fruit. In the Experiment-1, beefsteak ‘Grando F1’ tomato fruit was harvested at breaker stage and treated with AVG at six different doses (0, 62.5, 125, 250, 500 and 1000 mg L−1) and three different vacuum pressures (0 kPa, −20 kPa and −30 kPa) using vacuum infiltration method and kept at 20 °C for 8 d. The AVG treatment of 1000 mg L−1 at −30 kPa reduced ethylene production rate by 45.53%, delayed color changes and extended the number of days reaching to red ripe stage from 6 to 8 d at 20 °C and was confirmed as the optimal treatment for the maximum retardation of tomato fruit ripening by response surface methodology. In Experiment-2, untreated and treated breaker ‘Grando F1’ tomato fruit with 1000 mg L−1 at −30 kPa were kept at 12 °C for 0, 5, 10, 15 or 20 d and for 2 d at 20 °C after cold storage. AVG treated fruit had lower ethylene production rate, lycopene content, a* and C* values and higher fruit firmness, chlorophyll content, L* and h° values, compared to control during storage and shelf life period. For shipping to distant markets, storage and shelf life of untreated fruit were 10 d at 12 °C plus 2 d at 20 °C while AVG treatment extended storage and shelf life to 20 d at 12 °C plus 2 d at 20 °C.