Chilling Responses of Chilli Pepper Fruits at Different Ripening Stages to Low Temperature during Storage

This study was conducted to investigate effect of low temperature and ripeness stages on fruit quality of chilli pepper (cv. Nockgwang) during storage at 5, 7, and $10^{\circ}C$. Fruits at three ripeness stages were selected based on uniform fruit size and three maturities on peel color: S1 (fully developed fruit just before the onset of ripening), S2 (fruits in the onset of color change), and S3 (fruits in completely red in color). Lower temperature attributed to increase fruit weight loss (WL) and WL was higher in S2 than the other ripeness stages. The highest respiration rate and ethylene production was found at S2 fruit while those of fruit in green and red showed similar and remained lower level during storage. Electrolyte leakage (EL) was higher as storage temperature decreased. After 28 d storage, EL rates of fruits at $5^{\circ}C$ were 43, 36, and 17% in S1, S2, and S3 while those at $10^{\circ}C$ were 17, 19, and 14%, respectively. These results show that chilli pepper fruits are tended to lose more water at lower temperature partially associated with increased EL. Thus, threshold storage temperature must be considered for avoiding chilling during storage and for extending the storage life of fresh pepper fruits.