Effect of impact-bruising and storage on quality physiological changes of Omani pomegranate

The high incidence of postharvest losses is the main challenge to global food security. The bruising phenomenon is one of the critical issues related to many agricultural processes. Also, it can be considered a common reason for mechanical damages to the agricultural products that occur in some agricultural operations, including harvesting, handling, transporting, and processing. The study aims to investigate the time-dependent bruising incidence and physiological alterations of local pomegranate fruit as affected by impact damage and storage. This study simulates pomegranate fruit impact damage during handling and other postharvest processes using a pendulum test by applying two impact levels from different angles. Pomegranate fruits used as a control were left undamaged. The bruised and the non-bruised (control) pomegranate fruits were stored at 5 and 22°C for 28 days. Bruise measurements like bruise area (BA) and bruise volume (BV) were determined. Besides, weight loss, firmness, respiration rate, and ethylene production rate were evaluated. Two prediction models were constructed for the bruised area and bruise volume changes of pomegranate fruits. A three-way analysis of variance was performed to analyse all collected data. The results found that all bruise measurements increased with increasing impact level and storage condition. Significant differences were revealed between the investigated factors (impact, storage temperature, and storage duration) on weight loss, firmness, respiration rate, and ethylene production rate. Furthermore, fewer changes have been observed in the physiological attributes of pomegranate fruit with a reduced impact level (including the control) and storage temperature. The findings can help scientists, handlers, and transporters to enhance postharvest handling and storage management in the supply chain of pomegranate fruit. Also, this can be considered an important strategy to decrease the high occurrence of losses of agricultural commodities after harvest.