Treatment of Nitric Oxide to Improve the Quality of 'Mibaekdo' Peach during Shelf Life

The effect of nitric oxide (NO) on quality of 'Mibaekdo' peach (Prunus persica) was studied to investigate factors affecting consumer acceptance. Experiment 1) After harvest 'Mibaekdo' peaches were treated with 100 L.L NO for 5 hr and stored at 20 to examine the quality. Experiment 2) Peaches were treated with 100 L.L NO before or after cold storage (0) and stored at room temperature (RT, 25) to examine the point of NO treatment to maintain quality during transport after cold storage. During storage, ethylene and CO production, weight loss, softening, soluble solids content (SSC), pH, color and quality index were examined. NO treatment after harvest suppressed or decreased CO production, Hunter 'L', 'a', and 'b', but there were no effect on ethylene production, SSC, and pH. As a result of quality index, peach treated with NO maintained during storage periods. In the aspect of cold storage NO should be treated after cold storage and before RT transport. NO application after cold storage was better than without NO; also, NO before cold storage affected quality maintenance by delaying loss of firmness and Hunter 'L' and increasing Hunter 'a'. In 'Mibaekdo' peach, NO treatment at both after harvest and cold storage did not affect ethylene production, unlike previous study related to NO. Overall, the results indicate that NO has potential for maintaining peach quality during storage, but its efficacy can be affected by treatment time as well as by horticultural commodities.