Partial Least Square Regression for Nondestructive Determination of Sucrose Content of Healthy and Fusarium spp. Infected Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) Utilizing Visible and Near-Infrared Spectroscopy

Conventional methods of quantifying the chemical content of potatoes at different storage temperatures are time-consuming and expensive. This research studied the Visible and Near Infrared (Vis-NIR) spectroscopy for possible rapid and nondestructive methods. In this study, healthy and Fusarium spp. Potato seeds of Granola L varieties were infected artificially through the process of inoculation of fungi, and healthy potatoes were stored in various post-harvest storage conditions, namely temperatures 12°C, 25°C and a combination of temperatures 12°C and 25°C. VIS-NIR spectral data from seeds are observed periodically during the storage period. The study results showed that Vis-NIR predicted sucrose content in potatoes. The best-developed PLSR calibration model for potatoes stored at 25°C and a combination of 12°C and 25°C show R2c of 0.87 and 0.83 and RMSEC of 0.26 and 0.28. The models also successfully predicted the sugar content of potato stored at 25°C and a combination of temperatures 12°C and 25°C with R2p 0.75 and 0.78, RMSEP of 0.36 and 0.32, and RPD of 1.99 and 2.81 for sucrose. The developed model of sucrose content or potato storage temperatures of 12°C is not recommended for monitoring and detection due to the low RPD < 1.9 even though the R2c values are 0.65 – 0.9. the results of this investigation indicate that VIS-NIR spectroscopy could potentially serve as a tool for quantifying the chemical composition of potatoes during post-harvest storage.