Visual and Compositional Quality of Bulk and Packed Yellow Summer Squashes Displayed Under Simulated Retail Conditions

During distribution and retail display, fruits and vegetables are often exposed to undesirable temperature and humidity conditions which often result in increased waste at the retail and consumer levels. Yellow summer squashes (cv. Medallion) were harvested from a commercial operation and shipped to a distribution center (DC) in Florida. At the DC, 2 d after harvest, squashes were sorted and either commercially machine packaged in expanded polystyrene trays covered with a polyvinylchloride film or remained unpackaged for bulk retail display. Squashes were transported the next day by truck to a retail store in Gainesville, FL, collected from the store, and stored under optimum (10 °C and 90% RH) or simulated retail display conditions (4 °C or 14 °C and 90-92% RH). Visual and instrumental color, firmness, shriveling, chilling injury, decay incidence, and compositional quality (pH, titratable acidity, soluble solids and total sugar contents) were evaluated initially at the DC and after a 4-d simulated retail display period. Overall, packed yellow summer squashes had significantly lower weight loss, and retained better quality in terms of color, firmness, shriveling and chilling injury than bulk fruit during 4 days of simulated retail display conditions. The greater weight loss in bulk squashes compared to packaged fruit was associated with lower acidity, and lower soluble solids, total and reducing sugars content. Shelf life of bulk squashes was limited by poor visual color, shriveling, softening and development of chilling injury symptoms, and ended within 2 to 3 days depending on retail display conditions. Packed squashes had a shelf life longer than or equal to 4 days, and shriveling was the only shelf-life limiting quality factor for squashes stored at maximum retail-display temperature (14°C). Results from this study demonstrate the importance of using an appropriate protective package in addition to maintaining the optimum temperature during distribution and retail display. Moreover, initial quality evaluation should be performed upon reception at the DC, and before yellow summer squash are displayed at the retail store, in order to estimate the remaining shelf life before this product becomes unacceptable for sale.