<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">

<p>Prevention of postharvest losses has been a very important concern in the scientific world for many centuries, since adoption of an effective means to curtail such losses is believed to help in reaching sustainability in horticultural production and prevention of hunger around the world. The main means of deterioration in fruits, which may occur after harvest, include physiological changes/losses, physical losses, biochemical changes, changes in enzymatic activities and pathological deterioration. Among these, diseases cover the most important part; the losses due to diseases range from 5% to 20%, and this figure may extend up to >50% in the cases of certain susceptible cultivars. Fungicides have been the most important tool for the management of postharvest diseases for many years, together with hygiene, cold storage and packaging. However, due to the scientifically confirmed hazards of agro-chemicals on environment and human health, the acceptability of agro-chemicals decreased and scientists turned their attention towards natural alternatives. Most tropical and subtropical fruits contain a superficial cuticle, which helps them to regulate respiration and transpiration and protects against microbial decay. However, the waxy cuticle is generally being removed or damaged during washing or other handling practices. Therefore, the application of protective coatings (including wax) has been used in the fruit industry since the twelfth century, against microbial decay and for maintaining an acceptable standard of postharvest quality. This review aims to summarise and discuss the main natural products used for this purpose, to provide a broad-in-scope guide to farmers and the fruit storage sector.</p>
</abstract>

Prevention of postharvest losses has been a very important concern in the scientific world for many centuries, since adoption of an effective means to curtail such losses is believed to help in reaching sustainability in horticultural production and prevention of hunger around the world. The main means of deterioration in fruits, which may occur after harvest, include physiological changes/losses, physical losses, biochemical changes, changes in enzymatic activities and pathological deterioration. Among these, diseases cover the most important part; the losses due to diseases range from 5% to 20%, and this figure may extend up to >50% in the cases of certain susceptible cultivars. Fungicides have been the most important tool for the management of postharvest diseases for many years, together with hygiene, cold storage and packaging. However, due to the scientifically confirmed hazards of agro-chemicals on environment and human health, the acceptability of agro-chemicals decreased and scientists turned their attention towards natural alternatives. Most tropical and subtropical fruits contain a superficial cuticle, which helps them to regulate respiration and transpiration and protects against microbial decay. However, the waxy cuticle is generally being removed or damaged during washing or other handling practices. Therefore, the application of protective coatings (including wax) has been used in the fruit industry since the twelfth century, against microbial decay and for maintaining an acceptable standard of postharvest quality. This review aims to summarise and discuss the main natural products used for this purpose, to provide a broad-in-scope guide to farmers and the fruit storage sector.

Application of plant natural products for the management of postharvest diseases in fruits

Jiangxi Key Laboratory for Postharvest Technology and Nondestructive Testing of Fruits & Vegetables

Department of Horticulture, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences and Technologies

Department of Horticulture, Faculty of Agriculture

Folia Horticulturae

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Prevention of postharvest losses has been a very important concern in the scientific world for many centuries, since adoption of an effective means to curtail...

Application of plant natural products for the management of postharvest diseases in fruits

Article Category: Review

Published Online: Jul 08, 2021

Page range: 203 - 215

Received: Apr 08, 2021

Accepted: May 29, 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/fhort-2021-0016

Keywords
edible coatings, lipid-based films, protein-based films, polysaccharide-based films, postharvest diseases

© 2021 Chunpeng Wan et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Application of plant natural products for the management of postharvest diseases in fruits

Article Category: Review

Published Online: Jul 08, 2021

Page range: 203 - 215

Received: Apr 08, 2021

Accepted: May 29, 2021

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/fhort-2021-0016

Keywordsedible coatings, lipid-based films, protein-based films, polysaccharide-based films, postharvest diseases

© 2021 Chunpeng Wan et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
edible coatings, lipid-based films, protein-based films, polysaccharide-based films, postharvest diseases