Effect of Gum Arabic and Starch-Based Coating and Different Polyliners on Postharvest Quality Attributes of Whole Pomegranate Fruit

This study investigated the effect of gum Arabic and starch-based coating and two poly-liners (Liner 1-micro-perforated Xtend® and Liner 2-macro-perforated high-density polyethylene) on whole ‘Wonderful’ pomegranate fruit during cold storage (5 ± 1^◦C and 95 ± 2% RH). Uncoated (UC) and coated (GA_MS) fruit were packaged into standard open top ventilated cartons (dimensions: 0.40 m long, 0.30 m wide and 0.12 m high) with (GA_MS + Liner 1, GA_MS + Liner 2, UC + Liner 1 and UC + Liner 2) or without (UC and GA_MS) polyliners. After 42 d, treatment GA_MS + Liner 1 recorded the least weight loss (4.82%), whilst GA_MS recorded lower (8.77%) weight loss than UC + Liner 2 (10.07%). The highest (24.74 mLCO₂ kg⁻¹h⁻¹) and lowest (13.14 mLCO₂ kg⁻¹h⁻¹) respiration rates were detected in UC and GA_MS + Liner 1, respectively. The highest and lowest total soluble solids were recorded for GA_MS (16.87^◦Brix), and GA_MS + Liner 1 (15.60^◦Brix) and UC + Liner 1 (15.60^◦Brix), respectively. Overall, no decay was detected for coated fruit packaged with either Liner 1 or Liner 2. Therefore, the combination of GA_MS with Xtend® polyliners proved to be an effective treatment to maintain the quality of ‘Wonderful’ pomegranates during storage.