Quality traits of ready-to-use globe artichoke slices as affected by genotype, harvest time and storage time. Part I: Biochemical and physical aspects

•Biochemical parameters on globe artichoke slices were studied.•ANOVA revealed a significant influence of storage time, harvest time and genotype.•Globe artichoke slices had high nutritional and colour quality for 7 storage days.•'Exploter' was the most suitable for processing as globe artichoke slices.

Minimally processed globe artichoke products are not widespread due to rapid biochemical and enzymatic damage. This article reports a study concerning the shelf life of ready-to-use globe artichoke slices based on principal traits, including phytochemicals content, polyphenol oxidase activity, antioxidant activity and colour parameters. These traits were monitored, during 11 days of storage at 4 °C, for globe artichoke slices of three genotypes ('Apollo', 'Exploter' and 'Spinoso di Palermo'). Significant variations due to genotype, harvest time, storage time and their interactions were found. For example, harvest time markedly affected the level of considered biochemical parameters. Results demonstrate that genotype and harvest time are key factors for the extension of the shelf life of globe artichoke slices, but a compromise among nutritional values can be achieved for 'Apollo' and 'Spinoso di Palermo'. The comparison among the three genotypes analyzed support the conclusion that 'Exploter' presents the best properties for a commercial use as “minimally processed vegetable” (MPV). Furthermore, these results suggest that ready-to-use globe artichoke slices maintained high nutritional quality and colour parameters for at least 7 days of storage.