EFFECT OF MATURITY STAGE AND PLANT EXTRACT COATINGS ON POSTHARVEST QUALITY AND NUTRITIONAL CONTENTS OF TOMATO FRUITS (Solanum lycopersicum L.) UNDER ROOM TEMPERATURE CONDITION

Abstract

This study evaluated how harvest maturity and low-cost aqueous plant extracts interact to influence tomato shelf life and quality under ambient storage temperature. The treatments consisted of three (3) harvest ripening stage (mature green, breaker, red), three (3) postharvest treatment (neem aqueous extract, moringa aqueous extract, ginger aqueous extract) and a control. These were factorially combined and laid out in a randomized complete block design with four replications. Standardized aqueous extracts were applied as two-minute dips prior to storage at 25 ± 3 °C and 60 ± 10% relative humidity. Fruits were monitored over nine days at three-day intervals for weight loss, marketability, decay incidence and severity, soluble solids content, titratable acidity, pH, and vitamin C. Data collected were subjected to analysis of variance (ANOVA) and least significant difference (LSD) was adopted in separating the means. Results indicated that, harvest maturity exerted a dominant influence on cumulative deterioration: red fruits experienced the most rapid transpiration and metabolic water loss, exhibiting the highest weight loss and fastest decline in marketability, while breaker fruits showed lower cumulative losses but greater early susceptibility to infection. Aqueous plant extracts provided transient protection, significantly reducing weight loss and infection at three and six days; ginger and moringa were most effective at limiting early weight loss, and moringa sustained lower infection incidence by day nine. Neem and moringa enhanced vitamin C retention, whereas ginger increased soluble solids but reduced vitamin C. By day 9, botanical dips could not fully prevent long-term losses under ambient conditions. Integrating optimal harvest timing with targeted botanical treatments can delay early deterioration and offer practical, low-cost strategies to reduce tomato postharvest losses in resource-constrained supply chains. Future work should optimize extract formulations and application timing for scalable adoption by smallholder producers globally.