EXTENDING SHELF-LIFE OF ARRACACHA ROOTS BY USING PVC FILMS

Arracacha (Arracacia xanthorrhiza Bancroft) belongs to the Umbelliferae family and originated from the Andes. It is a very popular staple root in the southern states of Brazil. The present work aimed at evaluating the influence of PVC film and temperature of storage on the shelf life of arracacha tap roots (‘Roxa de Viçosa’). The roots were harvested from 10- to 12-month-old plants, hand washed and wrapped in PVC film followed by storage at 5 or 10°C. The relative water content (RWC), the incidence of chilling injury and commercial appearance were evaluated during storage. For those roots wrapped with PVC, no difference was determined for the RWC, whereas linear decrease on the root water content was observed for the treatments without PVC. Roots wrapped with PVC and stored at 5 or 10°C were commercially viable up to 60 days, while roots without PVC stored at 5°C had a shelf life of only 7 days, showing incidence of excessive water loss. In these roots at least 25% of the roots had chilling injury symptoms.