EFFECT of HEAT TREATMENT ON FIRMNESS of APPLES and APPLE SLICES

Effects of heat treatment on firmness of apples (Golden Delicious, McIntosh and Delicious) and apple slices were studied. Heat treatment (45C, for 1.75 h) of Golden Delicious and Delicious apples significantly increased their firmness, but no significant increase was observed for the McIntosh cultivar. After storage for 7 days at 2C, the treated apples were firmer than those stored at 10, 18, and 25C. Apple slices prepared from the heat treated apples were also firmer at 21 days storage than those prepared from nontreated apples: differences ranging from 12% for McIntosh to 48% for Delicious. This beneficial firming effect of heat treatment might have application in producing high quality minimally processed slices from Golden Delicious and Delicious apple cultivars.