The flavor of mandarin hybrids with different coatings

Mandarin hybrids were treated with wax and resin coatings having differing oxygen permeabilities. After storage for 7 days at 21 C, fruit with coatings having O-2 permeability less than or equal to 1.1 x 10(-16) moI m s(-1) m(-2) Pa-1 were rated by a sensory panel as markedly less fresh than fruit with higher permeability coatings. These low-permeability coatings were those composed mainly of shellac and wood resin. The flavor changed most for fruit having mean internal O-2 < 4%, internal CO2 > 14% at 21 degreesC and juice ethanol content > 1500 ppm after 7 days storage at that temperature. All coatings seemed suitable for storage of specialty citrus fruit for 7 days at 5 C. It is recommended that for mandarin hybrids, the most suitable are those composed mainly of waxes rather than shellac or wood resin. Published by Elsevier Science B.V.