Abstract
‘Tosa-buntan’ (Citrus grandis [L.] Osbeck) fruits were treated with 0, 20, and 40 ppm ethylene for 96 h in the dark in order to ripen the fruit and improve the color. As a result, the 20 and 40 ppm ethylene-treated fruits showed a decrease in their chromatic component (L value), and an increase in their a value and free amino acids (especially, asparagine and glutamic acid), compared with the untreated fruits. The effectiveness of ethylene treatments showed no difference between 20 and 40 ppm. Volatile constituents were analyzed by capillary GC and GC-MS, respectively. The amount of flavor compounds in the fruits showed no change regardless of the administration of the ethylene treatment or the storing period. The content of nootkatone, the characteristic flavor compound of pummelo, increased in all treatments. These results suggest that the ethylene treatment of‘Tosa-buntan’is a useful storing method for shipment to the market.
