Fruit Ripening Physiology, Signalling and Genomics

Ripening is a process in fruits that causes them to become more palatable. In general, a fruit becomes sweeter, less green, and softer as it ripens. Even though the acidity of fruit increases as it ripens, the higher acidity level does not make the fruit seem tarter. This is attributed to the Brix-Acid Ratio. Fruit ripening is an important aspect of fruit production. The timing of it affects supply chains and buying behavior, and for consumers ripeness not only affects perceptions of health but has nutritional effects too. Ripeness is closely related to spoilage which has a major financial impact on agricultural industries. Currently there are fast moving developments in knowledge of the factors affecting fruit ripeness, and this up-to-date monograph seeks to draw together the disparate research in this area. The aim of the book is to produce a comprehensive account covering almost every area related to fruit ripening including the latest molecular mechanisms regulating fruit ripening, its impact on human nutrition and emerging research and technologies. They allow many fruits to be picked prior to full ripening, which is useful, since ripened fruits do not ship well. For example, bananas are picked when green and artificially ripened after shipment by being gassed with ethylene. Calcium carbide is also used for ripening fruit artificially in some countries. When calcium carbide comes in contact with moisture, it produces acetylene gas, which is quite similar in reaction to the natural ripening agent ethylene. Acetylene acts like ethylene and accelerates the ripening process, but is inadvisable because calcium carbide has carcinogenic properties. Industrial-grade calcium carbide may also contain traces of arsenic and phosphorus which makes it a human health concern.