Postharvest Disease Control and Quality Maintenance of Fresh Fruits and Vegetables by Antifungal Edible Coatings

Abstract

Weight loss, physiological disorders, and postharvest diseases are the main causes of economic losses of fresh fruits and vegetables after harvest. Synthetic waxes, commonly amended with chemical fungicides, are currently often applied before cold storage or commercialization to reduce these losses. However, the continuous use of such agrochemicals is arising important health and environmental issues due to the presence of chemical residues on/in the fruit.