International Journal of Plant & Soil Science

Mango (Mangifera indica L.) is a nutritionally rich and economically important fruit crop, with India being the largest global producer; however, significant postharvest losses and limited export share persist due to inadequate packaging and storage systems. Despite advances in packaging technologies, comparative evaluation of conventional and innovative, sustainable packaging materials under ambient conditions remains insufficient, necessitating focused research to improve shelf life and fruit quality. The study aims to evaluate the influence of varied packaging materials on the postharvest quality attributes and shelf life of mango fruits under ambient storage conditions. The present investigation was carried out during the year 2023-24 at Post-harvest Laboratory, Department of Horticulture of ITM University, Gwalior, Madhya Pradesh, India. The treatments comprised of the effect of different packaging materials on the quality and shelf life of mango fruits. The experiment was conducted in Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with eight treatments and three replications. The experiment consisted of eight treatments including T₀ (Control (No Packaging)), T₁ (Fibre Box),T₂ (Corrugated Fiber Box) T₃ (Container-1 (Soil Mud)), T₄ (Container-2 ( Cow Dung +Soil Mud )), T₅ (Container-3 (Goat Dung + Soil Mud )), T₆ (Container-4 (Mushroom Residues + Soil Mud), T₇ (Container-5 (Cow Dung + Goat Dung + Mushroom Residues + Soil Mud) were used for this study. The lowest physiological loss in weight (2.49%) and decay loss (3.91%) at day 16, while maintaining the highest firmness (43.75 N), TSS (13.05 °Brix), Vitamin C (45.26 mg/100g), Vitamin A (42.50 µg/100g), reducing sugar (3.58%), total sugar (9.64%), and non-reducing sugar (6.05%) throughout storage. Sensory attributes colour, texture, and appearance were best retained under T₇ (score 8.67 at day 16 vs. 2.67 in Control). The maximum shelf life of 18 days was recorded under T7 (Cow Dung + Goat Dung + Mushroom Residues + Soil Mud), which was significantly superior to the control (12.67 days) and all other treatments under the agroclimatic conditions of Madhya Pradesh, India.