The effect of Aloe vera coating on physical, chemical, sensory properties and reduction of microbial contamination of nectarine during storage

This research was conducted with the aim of investigating the effect of edible coating (aloe vera gel) on the quantitative, qualitative, sensory and microbial properties of nectarine. The variables include the type of coating in 6 levels (the sample without coating as a negative control, the sample treated with the fungicide imazalil as a positive control, concentrations of 1, 2, 3 and 4 g/l of aloe vera gel) and storage time at 5 levels (zero, 6, 12, 18 and 24 days after harvest). Fruit coating was done by immersion method. During the storage period, chemical , physicaland antioxidant properties were measured. The sensory attributes (color, smell, texture and overall quality) and microbial contamination (total count and total number of mold and yeast) of different samples were evaluated at the end of the storage time. The results showed that during the cold storage time, the red-green color value, the amount of weight loss and the percentage of TSS increased, and the amount of TA, tissue firmness, TPC and DPPHsc decreased. The amount of TPC and antioxidant capacity was higher in samples with higher concentration coating. In the samples with higher concentration of aloe vera, the destruction of ascorbic acid and microbial contamination was less. Also, according to sensory evaluators, coated samples had a higher score. Therefore, it seems that the use of aloe vera coating has a good ability to maintain the quality of the nectarine fruit and can be considered as a healthy and effective treatment.