The influence of storage conditions on the dynamics of physicochemical markers of champignon (Agaricus bisporus) quality

Agaricus bisporus are the most common cultivated mushrooms. Champignons are a source of chitin, glycogen and minerals, and also have attractive organoleptic properties. Physicochemical and organoleptic characteristics of fresh Agaricus bisporus undergo significant changes during storage due to moisture transpiration, respiration and oxidative processes. The purpose of this work was to study the influence of storage conditions of cultivated champignons with unstained cap epithelium on the dynamics of their physicochemical parameters, as well as its relationship with changes in organoleptic parameters. The mushrooms were stored in refrigerated chambers at a constant temperature of +2 °C and +6 °C in polypropylene trays placed in bags made of biaxially oriented polypropylene (BOPP) perforated film and polyethylene (PE) film without perforation. Under all storage conditions studied, the nature of the dynamics of physicochemical parameters was close to linear (with the exception of the humidity of fruiting bodies when stored in PE film) — the calculated values of the Pearson correlation coefficient ranged from 0.67 to 0.97. Using two-factor analysis of variance, the influence of both packaging material and storage temperature on the dynamics of soluble solids content and mushroom tissue density was confirmed. When stored in PE film without perforation, a more intense negative dynamics of these criteria was observed compared to storage in perforated BOPP film. The identified difference is explained by the fact that in packaging made of PE film without perforation, conditions for anaerobic respiration were formed by the end of storage — the oxygen content decreased from 20.5% to 1.5–2.5%, which also contributed to the activation of decay processes. With increasing storage temperature, a more intense change in physicochemical parameters was observed, which was associated with an increase in metabolic rate. The relationship between the dynamics of all studied physicochemical quality markers and the dynamics of sensory assessments (with the exception of the marker "content of soluble solids" when stored in a perforated BOPP film at a temperature of 2 °C) has been statistically confirmed. Based on the results of the studies, the applicability of the criteria “humidity of fruiting bodies”, “content of soluble dry substances” and “density of fungal tissue” as markers for assessing the quality of cultivated Agaricus bisporus was confirmed.