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Dropping during transportation is a critical issue for tomato fruits, as it triggers ethylene production and affects quality parameters, leading to lower quality and a reduced storage life. Thus, this study was conducted to assess the physiological alterations in tomato fruits subjected to dropping. This study involved tomatoes harvested at green and red stages, subjected to the following five dropping treatments: 0 cm, 10 cm, 30 cm, 50 cm, and 100 cm. The results revealed that dropping from 100 cm induced the highest ethylene production, particularly in green fruits, where production began within one hour and peaked within 48 h. Red fruits exhibited a dose-dependent response to mechanical stress, with a notable decrease in ethylene production starting from the second week post-dropping, suggesting a regulatory mechanism. CO2 production peaked at 350.1 µL g−1 h−1 in green fruits and 338.2 µL g−1 h−1 in red fruits one day after dropping from 100 cm. Dropping also significantly influenced fruit color, firmness, electrolyte leakage, and vitamin C content. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed distinct changes in metabolite profiles, with methionine and ACC (1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate), key ethylene precursors, increasing in response to dropping, particularly in red fruits. These findings underscore the critical role of mechanical stress in modulating fruit physiology, with implications for post-harvest handling practices aimed at enhancing fruit quality and shelf life.

The promotion of industrial-mode production of Codonopsis pilosula Nannf. var. modesta (Nannf.) L. T. Shen (C. pilosula) has expanded the demand for the postharvest storage of fresh roots. Further research is needed to establish comprehensive methods to evaluate the impact of storage conditions. This study simulated the storage process of roots at near-freezing temperature [NFT (−1 °C)] and traditional low temperatures (−6 °C, 4 °C and 9 °C) for 40 days. At different storage stages, correlation analysis was conducted using quantitative data on 20 parameters, including sensory quality, active components, antioxidant capacity and physiological changes. Appearance and principal component analysis could distinguish between fresh and stored samples, while NFT samples on the 40th day of storage were similar to fresh ones. Correlation analysis indicated that NFT storage could maintain the sensory quality by increasing the antioxidant enzyme activity and active components, reducing the accumulation of reactive oxygen species and malondialdehyde and reducing the activity of browning-related enzymes and cell-wall-degrading enzymes. These findings highlight the importance of the overall quality evaluation of fresh roots and emphasize the potential to improve fresh root and dried medicinal material quality by regulating storage conditions such as temperature.

Loquat (Eriobotrya japonica Lindl.) fruit is a rich source of carotenoids, flavonoids, phenolics, sugars, and organic acids. Although it is classified as a non-climacteric fruit, susceptibility to mechanical and physical bruising causes its rapid deterioration by moisture loss and postharvest decay caused by pathogens. Anthracnose, canker, and purple spot are the most prevalent postharvest diseases of loquat fruit. Cold storage has been used for quality management of loquat fruit, but the susceptibility of some cultivars to chilling injury (CI) consequently leads to browning and other disorders. Various techniques, including cold storage, controlled atmosphere storage, hypobaric storage, modified atmosphere packaging, low-temperature conditioning, heat treatment, edible coatings, and postharvest chemical application, have been tested to extend shelf life, mitigate chilling injury, and quality preservation. This review comprehensively focuses on the recent advances in the postharvest physiology and technology of loquat fruit, such as harvest maturity, fruit ripening physiology, postharvest storage techniques, and physiological disorders and diseases.

Green-ripe banana fruit are sensitive to chilling injury (CI) and, thus, prone to postharvest quality losses. Early detection of CI facilitates quality maintenance and extends shelf life. CI affects all metabolic levels, with membranes and, consequently, photosynthesis being primary targets. Optical techniques such as chlorophyll a fluorescence analysis (CFA) and spectroscopy are promising tools to evaluate CI effects in photosynthetically active produce. Results obtained on bananas are, however, largely equivocal. This results from the lack of a rigorous evaluation of chilling impacts on the various aspects of photosynthesis. Continuous and modulated CFA and imaging (CFI), and VIS remission spectroscopy (VRS) were concomitantly applied to noninvasively and comprehensively monitor photosynthetically relevant effects of low temperatures (5 °C, 10 °C, 11.5 °C and 13 °C). Detailed analyses of chilling-related variations in photosynthetic activity and photoprotection, and in contents of relevant pigments in green-ripe bananas, helped to better understand the physiological changes occurring during CI, highlighting that distinct CFA and VRS parameters comprehensively reflect various effects of chilling on fruit photosynthesis. They revealed why not all CFA parameters can be applied meaningfully for early detection of chilling effects. This study provides relevant requisites for improving CI monitoring and prediction.

Pomegranate peel has substantial amounts of phenolic compounds, such as hydrolysable tannins (punicalin, punicalagin, ellagic acid, and gallic acid), flavonoids (anthocyanins and catechins), and nutrients, which are responsible for its biological activity. However, during processing, the level of peel compounds can be significantly altered depending on the peel processing technique used, for example, ranging from 38.6 to 50.3 mg/g for punicalagins. This review focuses on the influence of postharvest processing factors on the pharmacological, phytochemical, and nutritional properties of pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) peel. Various peel drying strategies (sun drying, microwave drying, vacuum drying, and oven drying) and different extraction protocols (solvent, super-critical fluid, ultrasound-assisted, microwave-assisted, and pressurized liquid extractions) that are used to recover phytochemical compounds of the pomegranate peel are described. A total phenolic content of 40.8 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g DM was recorded when sun drying was used, but the recovery of the total phenolic content was higher at 264.3 mg TAE/g when pressurised liquid extraction was performed. However, pressurised liquid extraction is costly due to the high initial investment costs and the limited possibility of carrying out selective extractions of organic compounds from complex peel samples. The effects of these methods on the phytochemical profiles of pomegranate peel extracts are also influenced by the cultivar and conditions used, making it difficult to determine best practice. For example, oven drying at 60 °C resulted in higher levels of punicalin of 888.04 mg CE/kg DM compared to those obtained 40 °C of 768.11 mg CE/kg DM for the Wonderful cultivar. Processes that are easy to set up, cost-effective, and do not compromise the quality and safety aspects of the peel are, thus, more desirable. From the literature survey, we identified a lack of studies testing pretreatment protocols that may result in a lower loss of the valuable biological compounds of pomegranate peels to allow for full exploitation of their health-promoting properties in potentially new value-added products.

For fresh-cut salad production, hot-water treatment (HWT) needs optimization in terms of temperature and duration to guarantee a gentle and non-stressing processing to fully retain product quality besides an effective sanitation. One major initial target of heat treatment is photosynthesis, making it a suitable and sensitive marker for HWT effects. Chlorophyll fluorescence imaging (CFI) is a rapid and non-invasive tool to evaluate respective plant responses. Following practical applications in fruit salad production, apples of colored and of green-ripe cultivars (‘Braeburn’, ‘Fuji’, ‘Greenstar’, ‘Granny Smith’), obtained from a local fruit salad producer, were hot-water treated from 44 to 70 °C for 30 to 300 s. One day after HWT and after 7 days of storage at 4 °C, CFI and remission spectroscopy were applied to evaluating temperature effects on photosynthetic activity, on contents of fruit pigments (chlorophylls, anthocyanins), and on various relevant quality parameters of intact apples. In ‘Braeburn’ apples, short-term HWT at 55 °C for 30 to 120 s avoided any heat injuries and quality losses. The samples of the other three cultivars turned out to be less sensitive and may be short-term heat-treated at temperatures of up to 60 °C for the same time. CFI proved to be a rapid, sensitive, and effective tool for process optimization of apples, closely reflecting the cultivar- or batch-specificity of heat effects on produce photosynthesis.

The promotion of industrial-mode production of Codonopsis pilosula Nannf. var. modesta (Nannf.) L. T. Shen ( C. pilosula ) has expanded the demand for the postharvest storage of fresh roots. Further research is needed to establish comprehensive methods to evaluate the impact of storage conditions. This study simulated the storage process of roots at near-freezing temperature [NFT (-1 °C)] and traditional low temperatures (-6 °C, 4 °C and 9 °C) for 40 days. At different storage stages, correlation analysis was conducted using quantitative data on 20 parameters, including sensory quality, active components, antioxidant capacity and physiological changes. Appearance and principal component analysis could distinguish between fresh and stored samples, while NFT samples on the 40th day of storage were similar to fresh ones. Correlation analysis indicated that NFT storage could maintain the sensory quality by increasing the antioxidant enzyme activity and active components, reducing the accumulation of reactive oxygen species and malondialdehyde and reducing the activity of browning-related enzymes and cell-wall-degrading enzymes. These findings highlight the importance of the overall quality evaluation of fresh roots and emphasize the potential to improve fresh root and dried medicinal material quality by regulating storage conditions such as temperature.

There is a large potential in Europe for valorization in the vegetable food supply chain. For example, there is occasionally overproduction of tomatoes for fresh consumption, and a fraction of the production is unsuited for fresh consumption sale (unacceptable color, shape, maturity, lesions, etc.). In countries where the facilities and infrastructure for tomato processing is lacking, these tomatoes are normally destroyed, used as landfilling or animal feed, and represent an economic loss for producers and negative environmental impact. Likewise, there is also a potential in the tomato processing industry to valorize side streams and reduce waste. The present paper provides an overview of tomato production in Europe and the strategies employed for processing and valorization of tomato side streams and waste fractions. Special emphasis is put on the four tomato-producing countries Norway, Belgium, Poland, and Turkey. These countries are very different regards for example their climatic preconditions for tomato production and volumes produced, and represent the extremes among European tomato producing countries. Postharvest treatments and applications for optimized harvest time and improved storage for premium raw material quality are discussed, as well as novel, sustainable processing technologies for minimum waste and side stream valorization. Preservation and enrichment of lycopene, the primary health promoting agent and sales argument, is reviewed in detail. The European volume of tomato postharvest wastage is estimated at >3 million metric tons per year. Together, the optimization of harvesting time and preprocessing storage conditions and sustainable food processing technologies, coupled with stabilization and valorization of processing by-products and side streams, can significantly contribute to the valorization of this underutilized biomass.

Loquat ( Eriobotrya japonica Lindl.) fruit is a rich source of carotenoids, flavonoids, phenolics, sugars, and organic acids. Although it is classified as a non-climacteric fruit, susceptibility to mechanical and physical bruising causes its rapid deterioration by moisture loss and postharvest decay caused by pathogens. Anthracnose, canker, and purple spot are the most prevalent postharvest diseases of loquat fruit. Cold storage has been used for quality management of loquat fruit, but the susceptibility of some cultivars to chilling injury (CI) consequently leads to browning and other disorders. Various techniques, including cold storage, controlled atmosphere storage, hypobaric storage, modified atmosphere packaging, low-temperature conditioning, heat treatment, edible coatings, and postharvest chemical application, have been tested to extend shelf life, mitigate chilling injury, and quality preservation. This review comprehensively focuses on the recent advances in the postharvest physiology and technology of loquat fruit, such as harvest maturity, fruit ripening physiology, postharvest storage techniques, and physiological disorders and diseases.

For fresh-cut salad production, hot-water treatment (HWT) needs optimization in terms of temperature and duration to guarantee a gentle and non-stressing processing to fully retain product quality besides an effective sanitation. One major initial target of heat treatment is photosynthesis, making it a suitable and sensitive marker for HWT effects. Chlorophyll fluorescence imaging (CFI) is a rapid and non-invasive tool to evaluate respective plant responses. Following practical applications in fruit salad production, apples of colored and of green-ripe cultivars ('Braeburn', 'Fuji', 'Greenstar', 'Granny Smith'), obtained from a local fruit salad producer, were hot-water treated from 44 to 70 °C for 30 to 300 s. One day after HWT and after 7 days of storage at 4 °C, CFI and remission spectroscopy were applied to evaluating temperature effects on photosynthetic activity, on contents of fruit pigments (chlorophylls, anthocyanins), and on various relevant quality parameters of intact apples. In 'Braeburn' apples, short-term HWT at 55 °C for 30 to 120 s avoided any heat injuries and quality losses. The samples of the other three cultivars turned out to be less sensitive and may be short-term heat-treated at temperatures of up to 60 °C for the same time. CFI proved to be a rapid, sensitive, and effective tool for process optimization of apples, closely reflecting the cultivar- or batch-specificity of heat effects on produce photosynthesis.

There is a large potential in Europe for valorization in the vegetable food supply chain. For example, there is occasionally overproduction of tomatoes for fresh consumption, and a fraction of the production is unsuited for fresh consumption sale (unacceptable color, shape, maturity, lesions, etc.). In countries where the facilities and infrastructure for tomato processing is lacking, these tomatoes are normally destroyed, used as landfilling or animal feed, and represent an economic loss for producers and negative environmental impact. Likewise, there is also a potential in the tomato processing industry to valorize side streams and reduce waste. The present paper provides an overview of tomato production in Europe and the strategies employed for processing and valorization of tomato side streams and waste fractions. Special emphasis is put on the four tomato-producing countries Norway, Belgium, Poland, and Turkey. These countries are very different regards for example their climatic preconditions for tomato production and volumes produced, and represent the extremes among European tomato producing countries. Postharvest treatments and applications for optimized harvest time and improved storage for premium raw material quality are discussed, as well as novel, sustainable processing technologies for minimum waste and side stream valorization. Preservation and enrichment of lycopene, the primary health promoting agent and sales argument, is reviewed in detail. The European volume of tomato postharvest wastage is estimated at >3 million metric tons per year. Together, the optimization of harvesting time and preprocessing storage conditions and sustainable food processing technologies, coupled with stabilization and valorization of processing by-products and side streams, can significantly contribute to the valorization of this underutilized biomass., Competing Interests: The authors declare no conflicts of interest.