Quality of brassicas can be affected by exposure to light in supermarkets

 

The study, published in the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture, claims that exposure to light on the supermarket shelves shortens the useful life of minimally processed vegetables (MPV), vegetables which are ready for immediate consumption after being washed, peeled, cut and wrapped.

 

According to the study, the life of broccoli can be reduced by up to 3 days, and that of cauliflower by up to 8 days. Thus the 14-day period that broccoli will remain fresh or semi-fresh when kept in the dark is reduced to 11 days and the 11-day period for cauliflower falls to just 3 days.

 

Other characteristics of the vegetables, such as colour and texture, can also be affected. Colour is particularly affected in non-pigmented green vegetables, such as cauliflower, whereas in green vegetables, such as broccoli, the sensory attribute which suffers the most deterioration is texture.

Scientists have shown that light promotes the deterioration of some vegetables, since this accelerates their transpiration and respiration, and changes the way they behave.

 

According to the researchers, the best way to avoid these problems and to ensure that the vegetables remain in optimum condition would be to keep them in the dark and in cool temperatures. Although this would of course mean that the consumer would not be able to see the product, making it less attractive, the study underlines the importance of changing the packaging of these vegetables, so that they will stay fresh for longer on the shelves.