The effect of washing on physicochemical changes in packaged, sliced green peppers

Whole green bell peppers (Capsicum annuum L.) were obtained through a local fresh‐cut company. They were washed in a 100 ppm chlorine solution, dried and then sliced into 0.5‐cm wide strips. A bulk sample of slices was divided into four treatments: (1) no wash, (2) one wash in fresh distilled water, (3) two sequential washes in fresh distilled water, and (4) three sequential washes in fresh distilled water. Retention of firmness of the pepper slices during storage at 7 °C improved with the number of washes after cutting. The modification of package atmosphere was less in all wash treatments than in the ‘no wash’ control. The sliced tissues of ‘no wash’ controls had higher levels of acetaldehyde and ethyl acetate. Analysis of the wash water revealed that sequential washes with water removed incremental amounts of acetaldehyde and soluble phenols from the cut surfaces of the tissue. These results show that washing has a dramatic effect on physicochemical measures of quality in green pepper slices, and it is likely that this effect is mediated by the removal of stress‐related compounds produced during the cutting operation. While acetaldehyde and total phenolics were the two stress‐related compounds measured in the wash water, it may be that other compounds removed in the wash water could have contributed to the beneficial effects on quality reported in this study.