Physico-Chemical Changes of Banana Cultivars under Modified Atmosphere Packaging at Ambient Condition

An experiment was conducted to assess the physico-chemical changes of banana cultivars (Malbhog and Grand Naine) under modified atmosphere packaging at ambient condition. Freshly harvested banana hands with 80.0 % maturity of the cultivars Malbhog and Grand Naine were wrapped with cling film (2.0 % perforation) packaging material. In addition, a sachet made of filter paper containing 2.0 g KMnO4 was also placed inside the cover. The wrapped banana hands were kept in a CFB (Corrugated Fiber Board) boxes at ambient condition (20±2 ˚C and 80-85 % RH). The entire experiment was replicated thrice and the data were analyzed following factorial completely randomized design (FCRD). The results indicated that physiological loss in weight and spoilage percentage were increased as the storage day progressed. The spoilage was more in the cultivar Grand Naine (88.88 %) than Malbhog (10.25%) at tenth day of storage. The maximum TSS, titratable acidity, sugar and ascorbic acid were found to be the highest on sixth and eighth day of ambient storage under modified atmospheric packaging in the banana cultivar Malbhog and Grand Naine, respectively, indicating the optimum edible condition of the respective banana fruits. Overall, all the physico-chemical changes in banana fruits were more in the cultivar Grand Naine than Malbhog.