Assessment of the Shelf-life of Cucumber under Three Low Cost Storage Methods

Abstract

Cucumbers, harvested from Saang district, Kandal province, Cambodia were wrapped with low density polyethylene (LDPE) or high density polyethylene (HDPE) or in the open before they were stored in two types of storage conditions (evaporative cooling system (ECS)(80 USD), designed in the faculty of Agro-Industry, Royal University of Agriculture and in ice foam box (2.375 USD) filled with an amount of ice for cooling the cucumbers or in ambient condition (1.5 USD) in order to seek for appropriate and low cost methods to maintain the quality and enhance shelf-life of cucumbers. The shelf-life of cucumbers were determined based on weight losses, fruit shriveling, changes in color, titratable acidity (TA) and total soluble solids (TSS). Of the storage treatments, keeping fruit in both type of polyethylene film in ice foam box filled with husk-covered ice was the most effective way in reducing weight loss, maintained higher TA, TSS and the color changes as well as retarding fruit shriveling than that of the other treatments. Fruit stored in the open at ambient condition had the highest weight losses and shortest shelf-life due to rapid yellowing and shriveling. Regarding the cost of storage, ice foam box was significantly reasonable accepted in term of gaining better quality (benefit) comparing to the higher weight losses and unmarketable quality of other treatments.