Effect of Preharvest Aluminum-Coated Paper Bagging on Postharvest Quality, Storability, and Browning Behavior of ‘Afrata Volou’ Quince

As consumer preferences tend toward safer, chemical residue-free, and nutritionally rich fruits, preharvest bagging has gained attention as a sustainable method for improving fruit quality and protecting produce from environmental and biological stressors and pesticide residues. This study assessed the impact of preharvest bagging using paper bags with inner aluminum coating on the physicochemical traits, storability, and browning susceptibility after cutting or bruising of ‘Afrata Volou’ quince (Cydonia oblonga Mill.) fruit grown in central Greece. Fruits were either bagged or left unbagged approximately 60 days before harvest, and evaluations were conducted at harvest and after three months of cold storage, plus two days of shelf-life. Fruit bagging reduced the quince’s flesh temperature on the tree crown. Bagging had minor effects on fruit and nutritional quality, except for more yellow skin and higher titratable acidity (TA). Also, at harvest, bagging did not significantly affect fruit flesh browning after cutting or bruising. After three months of storage, unbagged and bagged quince fruit developed more yellow skin color, without significant alterations in most quality characteristics and nutritional value, but increased total tannin content (TTC). After three months of storage, the quince flesh color determined immediately after cutting or bruising was brighter and more yellowish compared to that at harvest, due to continuation of fruit ripening, but it darkened faster with time after cutting or skin removal. Therefore, fruit bagging appears to be a sustainable practice for improving the aesthetic and some chemical quality characteristics of quince, particularly after storage, without negative impacts on other characteristics such as texture and phenolic content.