SEAL PACKAGING BY PLASTIC FILM AS A TECHNIQUE FOR LIMITING FUNGAL DECAY OF MANGOES

Mature-green 'Nam Dork Mai' mangoes (Mangifera Indica) were pretreated with 1,000 ppm hot benomyl fungicide before being individually seal-packaged with 0.01 mm PVC film and stored at 13°C. Combined effects of benomyl pretreatment and seal-packaging technique extended the storage life by retarding fungal decay during prolonged cold storage. Fungal decay was delayed for about 5 weeks in sealed fruit compared with 2–3 weeks in non-sealed fruits. Number of decaying fruits in sealed packages were reduced to one-fourth of the control. No significant effect in reducing fungal decay was found in sealed fruits with no fungicide pretreatment. An additional experiment was conducted by inoculating the fruit with Collectotrichum gloeosporioides. Fungal growth was significantly retarded in sealed fruits. Film packaging was found to retard fruit softening at the outer portion of the flesh but accelerated softening in the inner portion. During 4 weeks storage, the fruits were sampled periodically and allowed to ripen at room temperature. The fruit quality was not affected by film packaging. After 6 weeks the sealed fruits showed inferior quality after ripening.