Abstract
Fruits of 'Southland9 blueberry (Vaccinium ashie Reade) were hand-picked at mature-ripe stage to study the benefits of UV-B irradiance on postharvest shelf-life and fruit quality. After precooling, healthy, disease free, uniform fruits were selected and exposed to UV-B irradiance (180 to 310 nm) for 24,48, and 72 hr under cold conditions. The fruits were then kept at 2-3 C and 90-95% relative humidity for two weeks before determining their quality parameters. Treated fruits were softer, wrinkled and non-marketable compared to non-irradiated berries. UV-B, due to its high energy level, induced damaging effects and did not improve quality or storability of blueberry fruit at any of the above duration.
