Effect of Mango Storage Time and Pasteurization on the Physicochemical Parameters of Mango Puree Produced in the Northern Part of Côte d’Ivoire

Due to its rapid ripening, mango is a tropical fruit that is highly perishable nature. In Côte d'Ivoire, the abundant seasonal production of mangoes leads to significant post-harvest losses each year. To limit these post-harvest losses and thereby contribute to the economic improvement of local producers, the processing of mangoes into puree would be a major challenge in making the mango industry more competitive. This research was therefore initiated with the aim of reducing post-harvest losses to improve the economic situation of local producers by transforming mango into puree. In practice, purees were produced from Kent mangoes stored for 6, 8, and 9 days. The pH, titratable acidity, and Brix degree of the different purees before and after pasteurization were then determined. The study found that the impact of pasteurization on the acidity and Brix degree of the puree depended on the storage time of the mangoes. As for pH, regardless of the storage time of the mangoes, its value was not significantly affected by pasteurization. Furthermore, the pH, acidity, and Brix degree of the puree increased significantly (p< 0.05) with increasing storage time of the mangoes. The purees produced from mangoes stored for 8 and 10 days showed Brix values ranging from 16.30 ± 0.13 to 22.09 ± 0.05 °B, which are higher than the minimum value of 13.5 °B recommended by the Codex Alimentarius for mango puree. These present results suggest that Kent variety mangoes stored for 8 to 10 days after being picked at the mature green stage would be suitable for producing the highest quality puree.