The influence of molds and some storage factors on the ascorbic acid content of orange and pineapple fruits

Abstract The effects of some storage factors—storage temperature, length of storage period and rot development— on the ascorbic acid content of the fruits of orange ( Citrus sinensis ) and pineapple ( Ananas comosus ) were investigated. There was a gradual decrease in the ascorbic acid of healthy orange and pineapple fruits as the storage temperature (10°–30°C for pineapple and 5°–30°C for orange), or period of storage, increased. At 0°C and 5°C, especially when the relative humidity was low, pineapple fruits dried up while orange fruits wrinkled at 0°C. Very low levels of ascorbic acid were recorded for both fruits at the two temperatures. More ascorbic acid was lost in infected orange and pineapple fruits than in the healthy fruits. However, no total loss of ascorbic acid was recorded under any variations of each of the storage factors during the present investigation.