Effect of edible beeswax coating on tomato ( Solanum lycopersicum ) postharvest quality

Beeswax, known for its beneficial composition, has found wide application in various industries, including pharmacy, and medicine. The purpose of this study was to determine the efficacy of beeswax as a covering for preserving tomato postharvest quality. Beeswax was applied to tomato fruits in three different dosages (5, 15, and 25 g) and stored for 30 days at 10 °C. The results revealed that uncoated fruits exhibited a higher percentage of weight loss and firmness compared to coated fruits during storage. Coating treatments demonstrated the ability to delay the decline in weight loss, firmness, TSS and the preservation of bioactive compounds such as lycopene. Notably, the fruits coated with 25 g beeswax displayed significantly lower weight loss percentages than the other treatments. These findings suggest that the postharvest application of beeswax has the potential to extend the storage life of tomato fruits by maintaining fruit quality.