Effects of Storage Conditions on the Total Content of Anthocyanins and Degradation of Phenolic Compounds During Long Storage of Pomegranate Fruit (Punica Granatum L.)

Abstract Effects of storage temperature, elevated CO2 and reduced O2 in the package headspace, packaging material, and their interactions on the total content of anthocyanins and degradation of phenolic compounds in ‘Malase Torsh Saveh’ pomegranate were studied during long storage. The results showed that only storage temperature and its duration had significant effects on the degradation of phenolic compounds. The content of anthocyanins was affected by the single effect of storage time and its 3-way interaction effect with the storage temperature and the surrounding gas composition. Higher amounts of both total anthocyanins and browning pigments were recorded at 2 °C. The Browning index (BI) of the pomegranate extracts changed quadratically with the variations in the total anthocyanins content and linearly with the variations in the content of browning compounds. Thermal dipping treatment and its interaction with the storage time significantly affected the BI values of modified atmosphere packaged pomegranates stored at 6 °C.