posted on 2021-01-15, 13:03authored byH. T. Hong, A. D. T. Phan, T. J. O’Hare
Purple-pericarp
sweetcorn (PPS) is a novel product, requiring both
purple pigment development and maintenance of sweetness. Storage period
and temperature had a profound impact on total anthocyanin accumulation
(TAC) and sugar content. While TAC remained relatively unchanged during
14-day storage at 4 °C, the first recorded observation of continuing
accumulation of anthocyanin and phenolic compounds was concurrent
with an increase in purple pigment coverage across the surface of
the kernel at 23 °C. TAC in PPS significantly increased, doubling
after 14 days at 23 °C. Anthocyanin concentration and kernel
coverage were also affected by harvest maturity. The results indicated
that biosynthesis of anthocyanins is still occurring during postharvest
storage of PPS. A significant decline in sugar concentration was also
observed during storage with a greater decline at 23 °C. As anthocyanin
accumulation and maintaining sweetness are important factors for sweetcorn,
identifying storage temperatures that optimize both quality criteria
are required.