The use of ozone in strawberry post harvest conservation

In this work the effect of ozone treatment during post-harvest period on the development of fungi, yeasts and bacteria present on the surface of strawberry fruit cv. Candonga was investigated. Moreover the effect of ozone treatment on strawberries shelf life was evaluated using McKinney index. Ozone was applied in air at 5ppm for 24h, or in water at 0.8ppm for 2min, strawberries were conserved in ventilate or in a passive refrigeration chamber. The aim of the work was to investigate if ozone can control the development of the microorganisms present on the surface of the considered fruits in order to extend their shelf life. The results show that ozone treatment plays a control effect on microorganism contamination and increases shelf life.