Recent developments on postharvest application of edible coatings on stone fruit: A review

Stone fruit, including peaches, nectarines, plums, apricots and cherries, are popular worldwide as a result of their high nutritional value and desirable taste. However, stone fruit are susceptible to various postharvest quality problems including high weight loss, decay, over ripeness and susceptibility to physiological disorders such as internal breakdown and chilling injury symptoms. In the quest to improve fruit storability and shelf life of stone fruit, a lot of research has focused on the postharvest application of edible coatings. However, these coatings have varied effects on the external and internal quality attributes of fruit and the effects are dependent on types of stone fruit. This review, therefore, discusses the different edible coatings applied to enhance storage of stone fruit, with a focus on coating formulation, properties and mode of action specific to stone fruit. Furthermore, gaps in the literature and future prospects of edible coating application on stone fruit are identified.