CONCENTRATIONS OF INTACT GLUCOSINOLATES IN 'PARTHENON' BROCCOLI FLORETS STORED IN MODIFIED ATMOSPHERE PACKAGING AND AIR

Interest in healthier diets has increased dramatically, with consumers demanding easy-to-cook and easy-to-eat products not only with relevant nutritive value but also with other healthy properties. Broccoli demand has increased and a key factor is the abundance of health-promoting compounds in this cruciferous plant, such as glucosinolates. As the concentrations of these compounds decrease after harvest, the aim of this research was to identify, quantify and compare the evolution of the content of intact glucosinolates of ‘Parthenon’ broccoli florets during storage under two different conditions. The first one consisted of a modified atmosphere package (MAP) of 10% O₂ + 5% CO₂ at the steady state, reached by using microperforated polypropylene plastic bags of 25×25 cm with a thickness of 30 µm. The second one was broccoli florets stored in unsealed bags as control. Glucosinolate concentrations in storage for 12 days at 5°C were compared to those in freshly harvested (Fresh) samples. A high-performance liquid chromatography instrument coupled to an Ion Trap mass spectrometer was used for the intact glucosinolates separation and determination. Thirteen intact glucosinolates were identified, which were classified according to their chemical structure into aliphatic, indole and aromatic. Compared to Fresh samples the loss of intact glucosinolates content in MAP samples was about 23%, while in control the loss was about 57%. Therefore, the retention of these biocompounds was higher under MAP than air storage conditions.