Ripening
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ripening is a process in fruit that causes them to become more edible. In general, fruits become sweeter, less acidic, less green, and softer as they ripen.
Stages of a plant's life are influenced by hormones.(This is not actually true as the hormones are in blood, and plants don't have blood. These hormones are actually chemicals and other things). An important plant hormone involved with ripening is the chemical ethylene, a gas created by plants from the amino acid methionine. Ethylene increases the intracellular levels of certain enzymes in fruit and fresh-cut products, which include:
- Amylase, which hydrolyzes starch to produce simple sugars, and
- Pectinase, which hydrolyzes down pectin, a substance that keeps fruit hard.
Other enzymes break down the green pigment chlorophyll, which is replaced by blue, yellow, or red pigments.
Hormone levels in fruit are often connected to pollination. If too few seeds in a multiseeded fruit are formed (by fertilization of the ovules), the flesh of the fruit may not develop in some areas, and ripening will be retarded or prevented. Fruit growers increasingly monitor seed ratios in developing and/or mature fruit and adjust pollination management accordingly.
Many fruits are picked prior to full ripening because ripened fruits do not ship well. For example, bananas are picked when green and artificially ripened after shipment by gassing them with ethylene.
Some fruits, such as persimmons, are eaten only after bletting, the fermenting process of decay after severe ripening.
SmartFresh, is a technology to maintain fresh-picked quality of whole fruits and vegetables. 1-Methylcyclopropene (1-MCP 0.14%) works with the ripening process to dramatically slow down ethylene production and prevent over-ripening and problems associated with aging.
