Heat Treatment at 38 °C and 75–80 % Relative Humidity Ameliorates Storability of Cactus Pear Fruit (Opuntia ficus-indica cv “Gialla”)

Cactus pear fruit cv. Gialla were exposed to 38 °C and 75–80 (low relative humidity (LRH)) or 100 % relative humidity (saturated relative humidity (SRH)) for 36 h to evaluate their effect on decay incidence, peel disorders, and overall quality during 4 weeks’ storage at 5 °C plus 1 week at 20 °C or 5 weeks at 20 °C. Both treatments were equally effective in reducing peel disorders in cold-stored fruit, whereas decay incidence was significantly lower in fruit exposed to LRH than to SRH. The better LRH decay control was attributed to faster desiccation and fall-off the cladode piece left at harvest on the stem, which is a major onset site of infection. Both treatments reduced weight loss, had only a transient effect on respiration activity, ethylene production rate, and did not affect chemical composition, eating quality, or visual appearance of fruit.