Ethephon Time of Immersion and Concentration on ‘Carabao’ Mango Postharvest Ripening

Abstract Mangoes are worldwide consumed fruits providing health benefits due to flavonoids content. Nevertheless, its quality may be affected along the supply chain and then ripening strategies after harvest must be optimized. There are few studies evaluating different exposure times to ethephon on mango ripening. Additionally, the use of ethephon may promote the development of anthracnose, affecting fruits quality. Typically, ethephon is used for immersion times between 2 and 5 minutes. There are no studies about immersion times of less than 1 minute for mangoes ripening and to reduce its effect on anthracnose. Hence, this report aims to evaluate ‘Carabao’ mango quality after treatment with two immersion times, four ethephon concentrations in four storage periods. The experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design in Viçosa, Brazil. Pulp hue angle and pulp carotenoids content were influenced by storage, immersion time and ethephon concentration. Respiratory rate, soluble solids, titrable acid and weight loss were influenced by storage while firmness and weight loss were influenced by immersion time. Ascorbic acid content and soluble solids content were impacted by ethephon concentration and immersion time. In general, the lower immersion time with 1 to 2 g L-1 ethephon concentrations anticipated fruits ripening. Despite the high anthracnose incidence and severity, ethephon use had no effect on increasing the disease development, showing its suitability as a postharvest ripening agent for mangoes. Therefore, the ideal conditions for mango ripening using ethephon must be further investigated to improve mango quality after harvest and throughout distribution network.