Standardization of Maturity Indices of ‘Kew’ Pineapple

B.C. Deka, J. Saikia and S. Sharma

Department of Horticulture
Assam Agricultural University
Jorhat-785013, Assam
India

Keywords: specific gravity, respiration, ethylene, TSS, sugars, bromelein, PPO

Abstract
The Northeastern region of India produces more than 40 per cent of the total
pineapple of the country and almost 90-95 per cent is organic. The ‘Kew’ is the most
promising cultivar in this region having good quality attributes. A considerable
quantity of the produce is lost during handling and transportation due to lack of
knowledge of the producer about the proper stage of harvesting. Moreover,
appropriate maturity indices are not known for this variety. Therefore,
standardization of maturity indices of this variety is required to reduce the
postharvest losses as well as to maintain quality of the harvested produce.
Experimental findings revealed that fruit harvested during 146-150 days after
flowering (1/2 color development stage) was found to be the right stage of harvesting
pineapple. However, the fruit may also be harvested during 141-145 days after
flowering (1/4 color development stage). Days after flowering (146-150), specific
gravity (0.93-0.98), respiration rate (7-10 mg/kg/hr.), TSS (18-19 °Brix), acidity
(0.77-0.83%) and TSS: acid ratio (23-25) might be considered as suggested indices
for harvesting ‘Kew’ pineapple at the right stage for local as well as distant markets
during November-December.
INTRODUCTION
Pineapple, the queen of fruit, is one of the most popular fruits of the tropical
region. The Northeastern region of India produces about 49 per cent of the total pineapple
of the country and almost 90-95 per cent is organic. The ‘Kew’ is the most popular
cultivar amongst the growers due to its excellent quality. A considerable quantity of the
produce is lost during handling, transportation, transit and storage. The postharvest losses
of pineapple are reported to be about 15-20 per cent (Indo-US sub-project on postharvest
technology of Fruits and Vegetables, 1986-90) of the total production, which is valued at
about Rs. 800 millions. A substantial quantity of pineapple from Assam and other
Northeastern states of India is marketed in Kolkata and Delhi. These are harvested either
in immature or in improper stage and transported to Delhi by truck which takes 6-7 days
to reach Azadpur mandi from the remote corners of the Northeast. During transportation,
a substantial quantity of pineapple is damaged due to improper harvesting, rough
handling, absence of packaging systems, non-palletization and rough road. The loss is
about 50-60 per cent when ripe pineapples are transported in bulk without providing
cushioning materials (Bhattacharya, 1965).
Biochemical changes during growth and development of fruit is an important
factor in fixing the appropriate maturity standards/indices of the fruit. This is more so in
pineapple where such indices are required to determine the most appropriate time for
harvesting the fruit both for local and distant markets. Standardization of maturity indices
of ‘Kew’ pineapple is required to reduce the postharvest losses during handling
operations as well as to maintain the quality of the harvested produce. Therefore, the
present study has been carried out to investigate various physico-chemical changes during
the maturity stages of the fruit to determine the optimum stage of harvest maturity of
pineapple.

Proc. 5th Int. Postharvest Symp. 2215

Eds. F. Mencarelli and P. Tonutti
Acta Hort. 682, ISHS 2005
MATERIALS AND METHODS
‘Kew’ Pineapple was grown in the Orchard of the Department of Horticulture,
Assam Agricultural University, Jorhat from suckers. Fruit were harvested in six different
dates (maturity stages) during November-December based on visible parameters (color
change at the base of the fruit) and analyzed for different physico-chemical parameters.
Five fruits were selected from each of the maturity stages randomly as per the following
growth stages. The data were analyzed using completely randomized design.

Days from flowering to harvesting Growth stage

115-120 Days Mature Green Stage
135-140 Days 1/8 Color Development Stage
141-145 Days 1/4 Color Development Stage
146-150 Days 1/2 Color Development Stage
151-155 Days 2/3 Color Development Stage
156-160 Days Full Color Development Stage

Moisture content was determined on fresh weight basis by taking 10 g samples

(Ranganna, 1997). Specific gravity of individual fruit at each stage was measured by
water displacement method. Respiration rate was measured by using portable Oxygen
Analyzer (Model No. 101, Nucon Engineers). The depleted oxygen concentration was
recorded after two hours of incubation in an air tight container and the respiration rate
was expressed as mg/kg/hr. The pineapple fruit immediately after harvesting was
incubated in an air tight container for two hours for determination of ethylene
concentration. GC analysis was performed by using a Chemito 1000 Gas Chromatograph
with FID and a Porapack Column. Nitrogen gas was used as carrier gas at 30 psi inlet
pressure. Injector and detector temperature were 120 and 180°C, respectively. One ml of
the produced gas was injected into the injector of the gas Chromatograph (Chemito 1000)
and the ethylene concentration was determined by comparing the retention times with
those of standard ethylene gas under same condition. Sensory evaluation was done by a
panel of ten untrained members based on nine point hedonic scale rating (Amerine et al.,
1965).
Total soluble solids (TSS) were measured directly by squishing the juice from the
fruit slices with the help of Abbes hand refractometer. Titratable acidity was measured
according to the methods described by Ranganna (1997). Sugars were estimated by the
method of Lane and Eynon as described by Ranganna (1997). Ascorbic acid was
determined by 2, 6-dichlorophenol indo-phenol visual titration method of Freed (1966).
Chlorophyll and phenol content were estimated following the methods described by
Sadasivam and Manikam (1996). The PPO activity was determined by the method of
Benjamin and Montgomery (1973) at 25°C in a UV-VIS scanning spectrophotometer at
time scan mode. Bromelein was measured in terms of papain using papain standard
following the procedure for determination of proteolytic activity of papain.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

In all the stages of maturity the specific gravity was found to be less than one.
However, there had been an increasing trend (0.86-0.98) in specific gravity in fruit
harvested during 115-155 days after flowering and thereafter it decreased to 0.93 at 156-
160 days after flowering. Teaotia et al. (1967) reported an increasing trend in specific
gravity of ‘Langra’ mango with the progress of fruit maturity. Moisture content of both
peel and pulp of pineapple fruit decreased linearly with the advancement of maturity.
Similar results were also obtained by Saikia and Dutta (1991) in Dillenia fruit.

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 Respiration rate of pineapple fruit decreased from 10.60 mg/kg.hr at 115-120 days
after flowering to 7.44 mg/kg.hr at 141-145 days after flowering and then increased to
11.41 mg/kg.hr at 151-155 days after flowering. This was further decreased to 9.59 mg/
kg.hr at 156-160 days after flowering. Similar respiratory pattern was observed by
Gortner et al. (1967) in pineapple. The trend of ethylene concentration was similar to that
of respiration rate. This had clearly indicated that the ethylene was a powerful stimulator
of respiration even in non-climacteric fruit such as pineapple. Inoue and Takahashi (1991)
reported similar trend in respiration rate and ethylene production in avocado fruit. Fruit
harvested during 146-150 days after flowering had the highest sensory score (6.81) and
thereafter it decreased. This had indicated that the fruit attained optimum quality during
146-150 days after flowering.
Total soluble solid (TSS) was found to be increased linearly from 7.92-18.86
°Brix in fruit harvested during 115-150 days after flowering and thereafter it decreased.
Increase in TSS during fruit development was also observed by Chadha et al. (1972). An
increasing trend was observed in titratable acidity of pineapple fruits harvested during
115-160 days after flowering. For most of the fruit, a higher TSS:acidity ratio is
interpreted as better eating quality (Singleton and Gortner, 1965). TSS:acidity ratio of
fruit increased continuously up to 150 days after flowering (24.49) and thereafter it
decreased to 16.94 at 156-160 days after flowering. The increase in the ratio was due to
higher TSS content with the corresponding acidity at different stages of maturity.
Reducing sugars were found to increase linearly (3.05-4.81%) in fruit harvested
during 115-160 days after flowering. Like wise, total sugars increased linearly from 6.49-
12.74 per cent during 115-160 days after harvesting. Duckworth (1966) reported that the
sugars in the fruit almost invariably increased in amount due to the hydrolysis of
polysaccharides. Similar trend was also reported by Saikia and Dutta (1991) in Dillenia
fruit and Selvaraj et al. (1996) in grapes. Ascorbic acid content showed an increasing
trend (13.7-15.32 mg/100g) at 115-155 days after flowering and thereafter it decreased to
14.5 mg/100g at 156-160 days after flowering. It was reported that the ascorbic acid was
influenced by environmental factors rather than by physiological stage of the fruit
(Singleton and Gortner, 1965). Similar findings were also reported by Chadha et al.
(1972).
Total chlorophyll content in the pineapple peel showed a sharp decrease with the
advancement of age of the fruit. The total chlorophyll content was 0.766 mg/g in fruit
harvested at 115-120 days after flowering which decreased to 0.144 mg/g in fruit
harvested at 155-160 days after flowering. Hulme (1971) reported that ripening is
correlated with loss of chlorophyll. The results were in conformity with the findings of
Lodh et al. (1972) and Selvaraj et al. (1996). Gortner et al. (1967) reported descending
trend of chlorophyll with increasing maturity of pineapple. It was observed that the total
phenol content of the fruit was 8.30 mg/100g in fruit harvested at 115-120 days after
flowering which decreased to 3.45 mg/100g at 146-150 days after flowering. This was
further increased to 5.65 mg / 100g in fruit harvested at 156-160 days after flowering.
Bromelein is a proteolytic enzyme which is predominantly found in pineapple fruit
and stem. Fruit Bromelein enzyme activity showed decreasing trend (0.064-0.032 pu/mg)
with the advancement of maturity. Similar observation was also made by Lodh et al.
(1972) in pineapple. PPO activity also showed a decreasing trend in fruit harvested after
140 days of flowering. Similar trend was reported by Selvaraj et al. (1996) in grapes
during the maturity stages.

CONCLUSIONS
Pineapple fruit harvested during 146-150 days after flowering (1/2 color
development stage) was found to be at the right stage. In this stage the fruit exhibited
higher sensory score and other quality attributes and thereafter, most of the physico-
chemical parameters showed a declining trend. However, the fruit may also be harvested
during 141-145 days after flowering (1/4 color development stage). Days after flowering
(141-150), specific gravity (0.93-0.98), respiration rate (7-10 mg/kg/hr.), TSS (18-19

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°Brix), acidity (0.77-0.83%) and TSS: acid ratio (23-25) might be considered as suggested
indices for harvesting ‘Kew’ pineapple at right stage for local as well as distant markets
during November-December.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors gratefully acknowledge NATP, Indian Council of Agricultural Research,
New Delhi for the financial assistance.

Literature Cited
Amerine, M., Pangborn, R.M. and Roessler, E.B. 1965. Principles of sensory evaluation
of food. Academic Press, New York and London.
Benjamin, N.D. and Montgomery, M.W. 1973. Polyphenol oxidase of Royal Ann
cherries: Purification and Characterization. J. Food Sci. 38: 799-806.
Bhattacharyya, S.C. 1965. The Pineapple in India. Farm Bulletin, ICAR, New Delhi.
Chadha, K.L., Melanta, K.R., Lodh, S.B. and Selvaraj, Y. 1972. Bio-chemical changes
associated with growth and development of pineapple variety Kew. I. Changes in
physico-chemical constituents. Indian J. Hort. 29: 54-57.
Duckworth, R.B. 1966. Fruit and Vegetables. Pergamon Press, London. p. 63-94.
Freed, M. 1966. Methods of Vitamin Assay. Inter Science Publ. Inc., New York.
Gortner, W.A., Dull, G.G. and Krauss, B. 1967. Fruit development, maturation, ripening
and senescence: a bio-chemical basis for horticultural terminology. HortScience 2: 41.
Hulme, A.C. 1971. The Biochemistry of fruits and their products, Vol. 2. Academic Press,
London, UK.
Inoue, H. and Takahashi, B. 1991. Respiration rate and ethylene production in Avocado
fruits in Japan. Japanese J. Trop. Agril. 35: 187-194.
Lodh, S.B., Selvaraj. Y., Chadha, K.L. and Melanta, K.R. 1972. Bio-chemical changes
associated with growth and development of pineapple fruit var. Kew. II. Changes in
carbohydrates and mineral constituents. Indian J. Hort. 29: 287-291.
Ranganna, S. 1997. Handbook of Analysis and Quality control for fruits and Vegetable
Products, 2nd Edn. Tata McGrow Hill Publishing Company Ltd., New Delhi.
Sadasivan, S. and Manickam, A. 1996. Biochemical methods, 2nd edn. New Age
International (P) Limited Publishers, New Delhi.
Saikia, L. and Dutta, R. 1991. Study on the physico-chemical and organoleptic changes
associated with fruit development of Ou-tenga (Dillenia indica). Paper presented in
IX. Indian Convention of Food Scientists and Technologists on application of
Biotechnology in development of Food Processing Industries. 15-17 May, 1991,
Mysore.
Selvaraj, Y., Pal, D.K. and Shikhamany, S.D. 1996. Changes in chemical composition
and enzyme activity of grape during growth and development. Indian J. Hort. 53: 81-
88.
Singleton, V.L. and Gortner, W.A. 1965. Chemical and physical development of
pineapple fruit. II. Carbohydrate and acid constituents. J. Food Sci. 30: 19.
Teaotia, S.S., Singh, R.D. and Maurya, V.N. 1967. Studies on maturity standards for
Mangifera indica cv. Langra. Indian J. Hort. 24: 25-30.

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Tables

Table 1. Changes in physical parameters of pineapple at different stages of maturity.

Days from flowering Moisture (%) Specific gravity Respiration Ethylene Sensory score
to harvesting Peel Pulp (mg/kg/hr) (µ/kg/hr)
115-120 Days 84.49 87.03 0.86 10.6 0.021 3.00
135-140 Days 81.80 84.74 0.93 7.81 0.019 4.57
141-145 Days 81.40 83.91 0.97 7.44 0.018 5.38
146-150 Days 81.39 82.35 0.98 9.80 0.024 6.81
151-155 Days 80.60 82.24 0.98 11.41 0.037 6.67
156-160 Days 78.24 80.11 0.93 9.59 0.020 6.38
CD (P= 0.05) 0.667 0.167 0.029 NS 0.008 0.023

Table 2. Changes in chemical constituents of pineapple at different stages of maturity.

Days from TSS Titratable TSS/acid Reducing Total Ascorbic Total Phenol Bromelein PPO activity
flowering to (°Brix) Acidity ratio sugar sugar acid chlorophyll (mg/100g) (Pu/ mg) (Unit min-1
harvesting (%) (%) (%) (mg/100g) (mg/g) ml-1)
115-120 Days 7.92 0.66 12.0 3.05 6.49 13.70 0.766 8.30 0.064 0.024
135-140 Days 12.57 0.74 16.99 3.52 8.87 13.88 0.761 7.50 0.052 0.035
141-145 Days 18.20 0.77 23.64 4.16 11.25 14.40 0.627 5.90 0.048 0.028
146-150 Days 18.86 0.77 24.49 4.24 11.99 14.92 0.527 3.45 0.040 0.025
151-155 Days 18.0 0.83 21.69 4.38 12.44 15.32 0.211 4.25 0.039 0.020
156-160 Days 16.26 0.96 16.94 4.81 12.74 14.50 0.144 5.65 0.032 0.020
CD (P = 0.05) 0.868 0.065 0.244 0.115 0.081 0.478 0.010 0.004 0.001 0.004

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