Ozonation as post-harvest technology in conservation of fruits and vegetables: A review

Rotting of fruits and vegetables resulting from the activity of plant pathogens agents and natural senescence, lead to qualitative and quantitative losses, and consequently economic losses. This article aims to discuss the effectiveness, benefits, use and limits of ozone as a sanitizing agent to minimize the occurrence of fungal diseases on fruits and vegetables. In this context, the present review of literature through SciELO and ScienceDirect database studies and discusses about application of ozone and its effectiveness as a post harvest sanitizer of fruits and vegetables. Thus the review presents a critical assessment of the advantages and disadvantages of ozonation, the contribution and the impact of this technology to minimize post-harvest damage and losses; its use as an alternative to the chlorine, application forms and safety and the regulation of ozone use in agroindustry.

ozone; sanitization; microbial inactivation