Modulation of physicochemical properties and antioxidant capacity of papaya fruits by edible coatings under ambient storage

In recent years, fresh papaya has gained a lot of popularity due to its status as a superfood and its application in functional foods and beverages. Despite its significant production, the per-capita availability of this fruit is low because of its extreme perishability. Therefore, an attempt was made to prolong the postharvest life of papaya fruits by using edible coatings, specifically carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), chitosan, gum arabica and sodium alginate. Of the many edible coatings used in this study, CMC 1 % permitted papaya fruits to be kept at ambient conditions for 14 days. The application of CMC coating slowed down the process of ripening and significantly preserved fruit quality by lowering the rates of respiration, ethylene evolution and physiological weight loss. At the end of the storage period, CMC-coated papaya fruits had superior marketable fruit quality parameters, including total sugars (9.80 %), titratable acidity (0.23 %), ascorbic acid content (52.76 mg/100 g) and antioxidant activity (13.95 mg AEAC/100 g) with the highly favourable sensory properties up to 14 days. Our findings enable us to extend the postharvest shelf life of papaya fruits, allowing them to reach consumers with good sensory qualities and at reasonable prices.