Currently, when cauliflower florets are packed in a MA package, they can last 8 to 10 days at 7.2ºC. The goal of this research was to develop a prepackaging methodology that could extend shelf-life of cauliflower florets to at least 14 days at 7.2ºC. Various methodologies were used to treat the cauliflower florets, utilizing six GRAS (generally recognized as safe) chemicals and included various combinations, concentrations, and contact times. Chemicals included gaseous ozone, calcium chloride, citric acid, ascorbic acid, chlorine dioxide and sodium hypochlorite. The combination of 250 ppm ascorbic acid and 500 ppm citric acid pre-wash (30 seconds) and a 100 ppm hypochlorite wash (30 seconds, with pH adjusted to 6.5) proved to significantly reduce overall floret browning that develops in storage but did not reduce levels enough for it to be considered a commercially viable method. Further studies should explore the synergistic effects of combining enzymatic browning inhibitor treatments with microbial browning inhibitor treatments.
","abstract_html":"<p>Currently, when cauliflower florets are packed in a MA package, they can last 8 to 10 days at 7.2ºC. The goal of this research was to develop a prepackaging methodology that could extend shelf-life of cauliflower florets to at least 14 days at 7.2ºC. Various methodologies were used to treat the cauliflower florets, utilizing six GRAS (generally recognized as safe) chemicals and included various combinations, concentrations, and contact times. Chemicals included gaseous ozone, calcium chloride, citric acid, ascorbic acid, chlorine dioxide and sodium hypochlorite. The combination of 250 ppm ascorbic acid and 500 ppm citric acid pre-wash (30 seconds) and a 100 ppm hypochlorite wash (30 seconds, with pH adjusted to 6.5) proved to significantly reduce overall floret browning that develops in storage but did not reduce levels enough for it to be considered a commercially viable method. Further studies should explore the synergistic effects of combining enzymatic browning inhibitor treatments with microbial browning inhibitor treatments.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Harris, Joel David"],"institution":null,"degree_name":"MS in Agriculture - Crop Science","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":"Horticulture and Crop Science","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["J. Wyatt Brown"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2011,"date_issued":"2011-09-01T07:00:00Z","date_published":"2011-09-01T07:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:32:42Z","subjects":[],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["10.15368/theses.2011.177"],"render_values":[{"text":"10.15368/theses.2011.177","href":"https://doi.org/10.15368/theses.2011.177","code":true}]}]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/theses/619","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["J. Wyatt Brown"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Harris, Joel David"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.available","label":"Dc Date Available","values":["2011-09-07T07:00:00Z"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Horticulture and Crop Science"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["MS in Agriculture - Crop Science"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/theses/619","10.15368/theses.2011.177"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Currently, when cauliflower florets are packed in a MA package, they can last 8 to 10 days at 7.2ºC. The goal of this research was to develop a prepackaging methodology that could extend shelf-life of cauliflower florets to at least 14 days at 7.2ºC. Various methodologies were used to treat the cauliflower florets, utilizing six GRAS (generally recognized as safe) chemicals and included various combinations, concentrations, and contact times. Chemicals included gaseous ozone, calcium chloride, citric acid, ascorbic acid, chlorine dioxide and sodium hypochlorite. The combination of 250 ppm ascorbic acid and 500 ppm citric acid pre-wash (30 seconds) and a 100 ppm hypochlorite wash (30 seconds, with pH adjusted to 6.5) proved to significantly reduce overall floret browning that develops in storage but did not reduce levels enough for it to be considered a commercially viable method. Further studies should explore the synergistic effects of combining enzymatic browning inhibitor treatments with microbial browning inhibitor treatments.
"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Effects of Disinfectants and Anti-browning Agents on the Shelf-Life of Cauliflower Florets"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["J. Wyatt Brown"],"dc:creator":["Harris, Joel David"],"dc:date.available":["2011-09-07T07:00:00Z"],"dc:description.abstract":["Currently, when cauliflower florets are packed in a MA package, they can last 8 to 10 days at 7.2ºC. The goal of this research was to develop a prepackaging methodology that could extend shelf-life of cauliflower florets to at least 14 days at 7.2ºC. Various methodologies were used to treat the cauliflower florets, utilizing six GRAS (generally recognized as safe) chemicals and included various combinations, concentrations, and contact times. Chemicals included gaseous ozone, calcium chloride, citric acid, ascorbic acid, chlorine dioxide and sodium hypochlorite. The combination of 250 ppm ascorbic acid and 500 ppm citric acid pre-wash (30 seconds) and a 100 ppm hypochlorite wash (30 seconds, with pH adjusted to 6.5) proved to significantly reduce overall floret browning that develops in storage but did not reduce levels enough for it to be considered a commercially viable method. Further studies should explore the synergistic effects of combining enzymatic browning inhibitor treatments with microbial browning inhibitor treatments.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/theses/619","10.15368/theses.2011.177"],"dc:title":["Effects of Disinfectants and Anti-browning Agents on the Shelf-Life of Cauliflower Florets"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Horticulture and Crop Science"],"thesis:degree_name":["MS in Agriculture - Crop Science"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:32:42Z"}