Packing and Refrigeration for Mangaba Preservation

Mangaba (Hancornia speciosa Gomes - Apocynaceae) is a native Brazilian fruit that the production is predominantly extractive. Nevertheless, due the human exploration of coast areas in Brazil, this species is endangered. The species has high social, economic, and cultural importance in areas where it occurs. The work was to evaluate the use of packaging in cold storage of mangaba (10ºC). A factorial of 3 x 5 completely randomized design was used [three packing systems: control (unpacked),  fruits placed in polystyrene trays wrapped with PVC film and polyethylene terephthalate trays – PET for five storage periods], with four replications. During the 8 days of storage, an increase in the soluble solids - SS content (12 to 15. 27), titratable acidity - TA (4.5 to 5. 09), vitamin C (133. 77 to 267. 54) and pH (3.19 to 3.60). The PET packaging resulted in more acidic fruits (5.24) and less SS/TA (2.73). The other characteristics were not influenced by the packaging.