Evaluation of the Sensitivity of Kumquat Fruit Harvested at Different Stages of Color Maturity During Cold Storage

Harvested fruit color maturity stages (HFCMs) are classified into three stages: green stage (Gs), yellow stage (Ys), and orange stage (Os). The purpose of the study was to evaluate how kumquat fruits harvested at different stages of color maturity behave under cold storage in order to fill the knowledge gap in postharvest fruit storage research and reduce food waste. For four weeks, fruit classes were kept at 4 ± 1°C and 95 ± 5% relative humidity. Principal component analysis (PCA) was combined with the findings of these assays to investigate the impact of HFCMs on the kumquat's overall response. Each week throughout the storage period, the fruit decay rate, fruit space color parameter, and chilling injury index were estimated. Fruit skin pigments and fruit chemical quality traits were assessed. The results proved that Gs presented low CI symptoms and more AEAs compared with other kumquat fruit maturity stages. Furthermore, the Gs can delay the decay of vitamin C contents and inhibit increases in malondialdehyde and electrolyte leakage. The experiment results, which showed that Gs may greatly slow the decay rate in the quality attributes of kumquat fruit and are superior to other maturities, were supported by a thorough analysis of the data using PCA (Ys and Os). The findings indicate that Gs have a strong chance of creating a technique for handling kumquat fruit in the future. Testing the response of different ages of kumquat fruit to storage at low temperatures is new.