Influence of different postharvest treatments on nutritional quality of grapefruits

The effects of postharvest treatments and storage periods on ascorbic acid content were evaluated for Rouge La Toma and Ruby Red grapefruit cultivars (Citrus paradisi Macf.). The ascorbic acid levels in the beginning and the end of the treatments studied were not significantly different (P>0.05) for most treatments. For both cultivars, at the end of the marketing conditions, the treatments involving low storage temperatures did not affect the ascorbic acid content. At the end of the marketing conditions, Rouge La Toma grapefruit had a decrease (P<0.01) in ascorbic acid levels when temperature conditioning was part of the treatment. On the other hand, Ruby Red presented the same behavior when prolonged storage periods where used. It was concluded that Rouge La Toma grapefruit had a greater susceptibility to postharvest temperature conditioning than Ruby Red grapefruit relative to ascorbic acid degradation.