EFFECT OF VARIOUS WASHING SOLUTIONS AND WASHING CONDICTIONS ON QUALITY OF FRESH-CUT LETTUCE

Abstract

Salad-cut lettuce (Lactuca sativar L. var capital) is washed in different solutions such as H2O2, NaCl, KMnO4 and NaOCl at different concentrations, different pH and for different periods of time to identify a practical commercial process. Based on total microbial populations, relative leakage rates, mass losses and visual assessment of the packaged, stored lettuce, the chlorine solution gave acceptable quality. I min treatment with 100pmm total chlorine at 30 °C and pH 6 reduced total microbial populations to 104 cfu/g and prolonged stored time of fresh-cut lettuce by 20 days.