Análise do efeito de óleo vegetal na maturação de frutos de bananeira (Musa spp).

Abstract

Banana farming is considered the main food source and income in many countries. Brazil is one of the world's largest banana producers, but much of the crop is lost before reaching the consumer. In some regions, up to 60% of production is lost because the fruit has a very short shelf life and needs to be consumed quickly. Fruit ripening studies has been the subject of research worldwide. There is a need to standardize maturation to allow proper processing and commercialization. The present work aimed to evaluate the application of vegetable oil in the ripening process of banana fruits. The experiment used the green bark and silver varieties that were harvested in the Irrigated Perimeter Várzeas de Sousa, in the almost mature stage. It were evalueted soluble solids (° Brix), acidity and pH were evaluated. Soybean vegetable oil (5%), 50 ml/l water was used as the ripening regulator in banana fruits. To the oil was added emulsifier (1%) 10 g / l of the solution to improve the oil's adherence to the fruit peel. The treatments chosen were (T1 control water immersion as a control; T2 banana half-dipped in the solution; T3 banana completely immersed in the solution). The results showed significant difference in crops only for the variables °Brix and acidity.