Effect of wood ash, sawdust, and moringa leaf powder on the shelf life, and sensory attributes of tomato varieties in Nigeria

Abstract

Reducing post-harvest losses is a critical challenge for food security in developing countries, particularly in communities where small-scale rural farmers lack access to advanced storage and preservation facilities. This study investigated the use of locally sourced wood ash, sawdust, and moringa leaf powder as plant-based preservatives to enhance the post-harvest shelf-life and sensory attributes of tomato varieties in Enugu, Nigeria. The tomato fruits treated with these plant-based preservatives demonstrated a significantly longer shelf life than the untreated control fruits. The efficacy of the preservatives varied: moringa leaf powder showed the highest effect (26 days) on the shelf life of the tomatoes before 100% decay, sawdust (21 days) and wood ash (20 days). Among the tomato varieties used in the study, Roma VF exhibited the longest shelf life at the end of the 28-day treatments with the plant-based preservatives. The tomatoes preserved in sawdust maintained better appearance, aroma, texture, and general acceptability, followed by those stored in moringa leaf powder, while those preserved in wood ash were rated the lowest across all sensory attributes. The preservation time was also influenced by the tomato variety, suggesting that farmers should consider the variability in spoilage between tomato varieties when using plant-based preservatives to extend tomato shelf life. Our findings highlight the potential of locally sourced wood ash, sawdust, and moringa leaf powder as alternative preservatives to mitigate post-harvest losses due to perishability, particularly when advanced storage facilities are inaccessible or unaffordable.