Effect of Beeswax Coating with Cinnamon Oil on Quality of Sweet Peppers

Abstract

The most important postharvest problem of sweet peppers is their excessive softening that may cause flaccidity, shriveling and wilting, drying, decay and a very perishable vegetable with a short shelf life and high susceptibility to fungal and bacterial disease, in particular anthracnose and bacteria soft rot disorders that reduce the quality, marketability and consumer acceptance. The objective was to study the effect of antimicrobial compounds added to beeswax coatings to inhibit microbial contamination and maintain the quality of sweet peppers during storage. The results showed that cinnamon oil had the strongest inhibitory activity against Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, Colletotrichum capsici and Erwinia carotovora, compared to clove oil and thiobutacin. Coated sweet peppers stored at ambient (27 ± 2°C) or low temperature (10 ± 2°C) were firmer than uncoated peppers, lost less weight and had lower total plate counts compared to uncoated peppers. Beeswax coatings incorporated with 1.4% cinnamon oil could hold the quality and extend the shelf life of sweet peppers stored for 12 and 30 d at ambient and low temperature storage, respectively.