The softening or “texture breakdown” found in canned apricots from the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area of N.S.W. and thought to be caused by a pectolytic enzyme derived from Rhizopus stolonifer was not prevented by the heat treatment normally given in canning. A large experiment simulating commercial conditions without using artificial inoculation with the mould showed breakdown in some samples; a similar experiment involving long distance transport of the fresh fruit achieved significant reduction in breakdown by dipping in dichloran, an inhibitor of R. stolonifer . An experiment with fruit from the Goulburn Valley, 150 miles (240 km) south of the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area of N.S.W., gave hardness values considerably higher than fruit from the latter area and the inoculated fruit did not show any evidence of breakdown.
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Harper et al. (1973) studied this question.