Induced Ripening Agents and Their Effect on Fruit Quality of Banana

Ripening is a genetically programmed highly coordinated irreversible phenomenon which includes many biochemical changes including tissue softening, pigment changes, aroma and flavour volatile production, reduction in astringency, and many others. Banana is one of mostly consumed fruit crops in the world. Since banana is a climactic fruit, induced ripening is essential in commercial scale banana cultivation and distribution to assure good flavour, texture, and uniform peel colour. Ethylene gas, acetylene gas liberated from calcium carbide, and ethephon are some of the commercial ripening agents used successfully in the trade and they have been widely studied for their effectiveness on initiating and accelerating the ripening process and their effect on fruit quality and health related issues. Lauryl alcohol was also shown as a ripening agent for bananas. Most studies suggest that there is no difference in biochemical composition and sensory quality in bananas treated with chemicals that induce ripening from naturally ripened bananas. However volatile profiles of artificially ripened bananas were shown to be considerably different from naturally ripened bananas in some studies. This review discusses induced ripening agents and their effect on fruit quality of bananas.