ISSN 2375-1134
African Journal of Agriculture ISSN 2375-1134 Vol. 6 (4), pp. 001-007, April, 2019. © International Scholars Journals
Full Length Research Paper
Influence of organic and conventional production systems on the quality of tomatoes during storage
Hüsnü Ünlü1*, Halime Özdamar Ünlü1, Ya ar Karakurt1 and Hüseyin Padem1,2
1Department of Horticultural Sciences, Faculty of Agricultural, Suleyman Demirel University, Isparta, Turkey.
2International Burch University, Francuske revolucije bb. Ilidza, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Accepted 16 December, 2018
Abstract
Consumers generally believe that organically grown tomatoes taste better and have higher nutritional value than their conventionally grown counterparts. The study was conducted to compare quality properties of tomato cultivars grown using organic and conventional production systems during storage at 13°C for 35 days. Results indicated that fruits grown using organic production system retained their firmness better during storage than their conventionally grown counterparts. However, conventionally grown fruit showed significantly higher red coloration. Other quality parameters examined in the study for organically produced fruit were either lower or similar to those in conventionally grown fruit. Microbial fertilization and plant activator significantly increased total soluble and reducing sugar contents. Thus, no definite conclusion can be reached with respect to the superior quality of organically grown fruit compared to their conventionally grown counterparts. The influence of growing system appears to be cultivar and growth condition dependent.
Key words: Microbial fertilization, plant activator, quality, tomato, storage, organic, conventional.