Assessment of physicochemical changes in G9 bananas under traditional and chamber initiated modified atmosphere packaging (CI MAP) ripening systems

Postharvest losses in bananas (Musa spp.) remain a significant challenge in Nepal due to the reliance on traditional ripening methods lacking environmental control. This study aimed to evaluate the physicochemical changes in G9 bananas ripened under traditional and CI MAP environments using statistical analyses. A completely randomized design was employed with five sub-treatments under both ripening methods. Parameters measured included physiological loss in weight (PLW), firmness, pulp-to-peel ratio (PP), total soluble solids (TSS), titratable acidity (TA), TSS/TA ratio, and pH over a 10-day period. Descriptive statistics, analysis of variance (ANOVA), Student’s t tests, Kruskal–Wallis tests, and Mann–Whitney U tests were used for data analysis. CI MAP ripening significantly reduced PLW (3.79% vs. 6.88%), increased TSS (22.86°Brix vs. 13.01°Brix), and improved TSS/TA ratio (71.67 vs. 26.02), indicating enhanced sweetness related quality attributes. Traditional methods better preserved firmness (4.02 kg/cm2 vs. 1.37 kg/cm2) and acidity (0.64% vs. 0.36%), although they were associated with peel browning and greater variability in visual quality. These findings suggest a trade-off between structural quality retention and biochemical quality enhancement during ripening. Overall, CI MAP provide advantages for improving sweetness-related traits and reducing weight loss, whereas traditional methods are limited by quality inconsistencies.