ABSTRACT
Most postharvest losses in pineapple are due to infection by phytopathogenic fungi and bacteria. Infection is normally through wounds, insect injuries, natural damage created during transportation, handling and packaging. Black rot (Thielaviopsis paradoxa), fruitlet core rot (disease complex), yeasty fermentation (Saccharomyces spp. and Candida spp.), pink disease (Tatumella citrea), etc. are the major postharvest diseases of pineapple. There are many physiological disorders which also cause considerable damage to fruits. Diseases like fruitlet core rot, which are very complex in nature, still need a great deal of investigation for determination of correct etiology. Even mycotoxigenic species like Fusarium proliferatum, F. ananatum and F. oxysporum, which have been detected on pineapple fruit, pose a different kind of threat, as the fruits contaminated with mycotoxin can be highly detrimental to health. For management of postharvest diseases, the major focus should be on reducing the injury to the fruit during harvesting and postharvest handling. Harvesting at the proper stage, use of permitted fungicides, biocontrol agents, storage at proper temperature, wax coating and proper sanitation during the postharvest operations are the crucial factors in reducing postharvest losses. Use of biotechnological tools which can lower the expression of certain genes or inhibit the growth of the causal organism in the fruit is also being suggested by various researchers, especially in pink disease of pineapple. Although use of biocontrol agents is considered to be eco-friendly, its production in huge quantities for application poses a special challenge.
