Dip treatments for fresh Romaine lettuce

The effects of dip treatments with chlorine, citric acid, ascorbic acid and CaCl 2 on the storage life of Romaine lettuce leaves were investigated. While the presence of chlorine delayed degradation related to the activity of the native and exogenous microflora, the other compounds did not improve the storage life of the product when used alone. A combination of citric and ascorbic acid had a beneficial effect on the overall visual quality (color, texture, brightness). The ratio of ascorbic acid contents in samples treated and not treated with ascorbic acid as additive was about 4.2:1 immediately after the dip treatment but dropped to about 2.1:1 after 10 days of storage.