Quality of Butia capitata fruits harvested at different maturity stages Received for publication: November 23, 2021. Accepted for publication: April 15, 2022. Doi: 10.15446/agron.colomb.v40n1.99651 1 Department of Agricultural Science, Universidade Estadual de Montes Claros, Janaúba, MG (Brazil). 2 Campo Experimental do Gorutuba, Empresa de Pesquisa Agropecuária de Minas Gerais, Epamig Norte, Nova Porteirinha, MG (Brazil). * Corresponding author: maristella.martineli@unimontes.br Agronomía Colombiana 40(1), 69-76, 2022 ABSTRACT RESUMEN Butia capitata (Mart.) Becc. or “coquinho azedo” is a native palm species of the Brazilian savannah, bears fruits which are sold fresh or as frozen pulp. This study examined postharvest changes in “coquinho azedo” harvested at a commercially immature stage and later evaluated the quality of these fruits by comparing them with those harvested fully ripe. Fruits purchased in the 2020 harvest in Santo Antônio do Retiro, MG (Brazil), were harvested at different degrees of maturity, namely, commercially immature and ripe, according to the point of harvest adopted in the region. For 7 d, weight loss, skin color and respiratory activity were evaluated in the commer- cially immature-harvested fruits. At 7 d postharvest, physical and chemical evaluations of the pulp were performed. The ripe-harvested fruits were subjected to the same evaluations, but only at 1 d postharvest. The skin color of commercially immature-harvested fruits tended to yellow over the days. Respiration postharvest increased in the immature-harvested fruits. Fresh weight loss exceeded 10% but without compro- mising appearance. The commercially immature-harvested fruits had 55% more total phenols, whereas the ripe-harvested fruits had higher soluble solids and ascorbic acid contents. Pulp color, soluble solids/titratable acidity ratio and total carotenoid contents were similar regardless of the degree of maturity at harvest. During the days after the harvest of the commercially immature “coquinho azedo”, changes take place which cause them to resemble the fruit harvested ripe. Based on the evalu- ated traits, the early harvest did not compromise the ripening of the fruits. Butia capitata (Mart.) Becc. o “coquinho azedo” es una especie de palma nativa de la f lora brasileña, produce frutos que se venden frescos o como pulpa congelada. Este estudio exami- nó los cambios poscosecha en los frutos de “coquinho azedo” recolectados en su etapa comercialmente inmaduros y evaluó su calidad comparándola con los cosechados completamente maduros. Los frutos adquiridos en la cosecha de 2020 en Santo Antônio do Retiro, MG (Brasil), fueron cosechados en diferentes grados de madurez: inmaduros o maduros según el punto de cosecha adoptado en la región. Durante 7 d, se eva- luó la pérdida de peso, el color de la epidermis y la actividad respiratoria en los frutos inmaduros recolectados. A los 7 d poscosecha, se realizaron evaluaciones físicas y químicas de la pulpa. Los frutos cosechados maduros fueron sometidos a las mismas evaluaciones, pero 1 d después de recolectados. El color de la epidermis de los frutos inmaduros tendió a amarillearse con el paso de los días. La respiración poscosecha aumentó en los frutos inmaduros. La pérdida de peso fresco superó el 10%, pero sin comprometer la apariencia. Los frutos cosechados inmaduros tuvieron un 55% más de fenoles totales, mientras que los maduros tuvieron mayores niveles de sólidos solubles y ácido ascórbico. El color de la pulpa, la relación solidos solubles/ acidez titulable y el contenido de carotenoides totales fueron similares independiente del estado de madurez en la cosecha. Durante los días posteriores a la cosecha del “coquinho azedo” comercialmente inmaduro, ocurren cambios que los hacen similares a los cosechados maduros. Con base en las caracterís- ticas evaluadas, la anticipación de la cosecha no comprometió la maduración de los frutos. Key words: coquinho azedo, postharvest, quality, ripening. Palabras clave: coqu i n ho a zedo, poscosecha, ca l idad, maduración. Quality of Butia capitata fruits harvested at different maturity stages Calidad de frutos de Butia capitata cosechados en diferentes estados de madurez Maristella Martineli1*, Ariane Castricini2, Julia Lavínia Oliveira Santos1, Loranny Danielle Pereira1, and Camila Maida de Albuquerque Maranhão1 Introduction Butia capitata, commonly known as “coquinho azedo” in Portuguese, is a Brazilian endemic palm tree that grows in the Cerrado regions of the states of Bahia, Minas Gerais, and Goiás (CNCFlora, 2020). The “coquinho azedo” fruits constitute an important source of income for producers during the harvest period, which runs from October to January (Lima et al., 2010). The fruit is sold fresh and as frozen pulp for use also during the off-season. According to Castricini et al. (2020), “coquinho azedo” pulp frozen for eight months exhibited variations in instrumental color (lightness, chroma and °hue), pH, titratable acidity (TA), contents of soluble solids (SS), and ascorbic acid content, https://doi.org/10.15446/agron.colomb.v40n1.99651 70 Agron. Colomb. 40(1) 2022 without prejudice to the minimum standards of identity and quality. The “coquinho azedo” pulp is a source of vitamin C, β-carotene and phenolic compounds (Barbosa et al., 2021). According to these authors, the consumption of the fruit should be encouraged due to the antioxidant action of these compounds on growth, development, and protection against diseases. Optimum postharvest fruit quality is inf luenced by the maturity stage at the time of harvest, with fruits harvested immature or overripe having inferior quality and a shorter shelf life (Braman et al., 2015). In addition, Chitarra and Chitarra (2005) stated that early harvested (immature) fruits will have poor sensory attributes, even if they reach maturity some time later. This was demonstrated in fruits of Ziziphus jujube, cv. Dongzao harvested with a light green color (80 d after full f lowering), which showed lower sensory acceptance up to the sixth day of shelf life, com- pared with fruits harvested with 50% of the skin red (110 d after full f lowering) (Zhao et al., 2021). Finally, Lobos et al. (2018) mentioned that Vaccinium corymbosum L. fruits harvested at a higher degree of maturity exhibited higher soluble solids contents and soluble solids/titratable acidity ratio at 30 and 40 d of cold storage. Lima et al. (2010) suggested that the best time for harvest- ing “coquinho azedo” is when most of the fruits in the bunch are yellowish-green (color-turning stage), since, if harvested green, not all of them will ripen and become good for consumption. However, if they are harvested ripe, the percentage of fruit losses due to decay can be high, reduc- ing marketing time. Therefore, this study was undertaken to examine the post- harvest changes (physical, chemical, and physiological) of “coquinho-azedo” harvested at a commercially immature stage of maturity and evaluate the characteristics of these fruits by comparing them with those harvested fully ripe. Material and methods Fruit collection The “coquinho azedo” fruits were acquired from the 2020 harvest period in the municipality of Santo Antônio do Retiro - MG, Brazil. The fruits were harvested by the pro- ducer at different degrees of maturity, namely, ripe and commercially unripe, according to the point of harvest adopted in the region. B. capitata is a native species of the Brazilian f lora and, for this reason, the fruit collection activity was registered in the National System for the Management of Genetic Heritage and Associated Traditional Knowledge (SisGen) under no. A8E6425. Experimental design The study was divided into two stages, according to the degree of maturity at harvest: ripe and commercially im- mature. A completely randomized experimental design with six replicates was used, with each replicate consisting of three fruits. The ripe-harvested fruits had completely yellow skin (light- ness=64.07, chroma=63.33, and °hue=72.02), whereas the skin of those harvested when commercially immature was green with yellow spots (lightness=57.39, chroma=37.19, and °hue=103.99). Evaluations of fruits picked ripe and commercially immature After harvesting, the fruits were sent to the laboratory, and on the following day (1 d postharvest), respiratory activity was evaluated for 1 d in the ripe and for 7 d in the commercially immature-harvested fruits. The average temperature and relative humidity of the environment in the experimental period were 26.66ºC and 79.43%, respec- tively. Respiratory activity was measured simultaneously by two methods, to confirm the respiratory trends of the commercially immature fruits. The evaluation by titrimetry followed the methodology of Crispim et al. (1994), adapted by Deliza et al. (2008), with results expressed in mg CO2 kg h -1 on each evaluation day. Instrumental evaluation consisted of measuring the percentage of carbon dioxide (CO2) accumulated inside the container holding the fruits, which was determined by direct measurement with a CO2 Analyzer  (MOCON, Ametek®) throughout the experimental period. In both methodologies, each replicate was placed in a covered 5.2-L PET bottle protected by a PVC film to ensure better sealing, preventing and/or reducing gas exchange with the external environment. Parallel to measurement of respiratory activity, the fruits har vested at the commercially immature stage were weighed daily on a digital scale to determine weight loss. Losses were calculated each day relative to the initial weight of the fruits, with the result expressed in percentage terms. 71Martineli, Castricini, Santos, Pereira, and Maranhão: Quality of Butia capitata fruits harvested at different maturity stages Skin color in the immature fruits was also measured daily (before packaging), using a colorimeter (CR 400 Chroma meter, Minolta®) operating in the LCH system (lightness, chroma and °hue). Three readings were performed in the mid-region of each fruit. On the last day of evaluation (7 d postharvest), these fruits were crushed without the skin and the pulp subjected to the following assessments: - instrumental color, following the methodology de- scribed for whole fruits; - pH, by potentiometry; - titratable acidity, by titration with 0.1 M NaOH, with results expressed in g citric acid 100 g-1; - soluble solids (ºBrix), determined by digital refrac- tometry, according to the Adolfo Lutz Institute – IAL (2008); - ascorbic acid (mg 100 g-1), measured by the reduction of the indicator 2,6-dichloroindophenol (DCIP) by ascorbic acid (Brasil, 2013); - total carotenoid contents (mg 100 g-1), by spectro- photometry, as proposed by Lichtenthaler (1987); extraction took place in ethyl alcohol (95% ethanol), in a dark and refrigerated environment, for 24 h. The filtered extract was read in a spectrophotometer, with the absorbance (A) of chlorophyll “a” determined at 664 nm, chlorophyll “b” at 648 nm, and total carotenoids at 470 nm; - total contents of phenolic compounds, determined ac- cording to Singleton and Rossi (1965) and Georgé et al. (2005) with modifications. The extraction took place in 70% acetone for 20 min in an ultrasound device and centrifuging at 4,000 rpm for 20 min. The mixture was filtered through rapid-filtration filter paper and the ex- traction (successive extraction) was repeated. The 10% Folin-Ciocalteu and 7.5% calcium carbonate reagents were added to the extract. Total phenolic compounds were quantified using a gallic acid calibration curve, with values expressed in mg gallic acid 100 g-1. The ripe-harvested fruits were subjected to these same assessments, 1 d post-harvest, following the methodology described for immature fruits. Data analysis The data were subjected to the Shapiro-Wilk and Bartlett tests to check for the normality of errors and homogeneity of variances, respectively. Because they did not meet the assumptions, the skin color data of “coquinho azedo” co- llected at the commercially immature stage were subjected to non-parametric statistics, with the color change over the days of storage analyzed by the Kruskal-Wallis test and, subsequently, Dunn’s test. The other characteristics met the assumptions. The fresh weight loss data of the immature-harvested fruits were subjected to analysis of variance, in which losses over the storage days were analyzed by regression. Data on the physical and chemical characteristics of the pulp (destructive evaluations) of fruits harvested at the ripe stage (1 d postharvest) and commercially immature (7 d postharvest) were compared by the t-test, to observe whether the commercially immature-harvested fruits would complete their ripening and resemble the ripe produce. The respirator y activity of commercially immature- harvested fruits (by both methods used) during ripening was evaluated by descriptive statistics. All analyses were performed at the 5% significance level, using Sisvar statisti- cal software (Ferreira, 2007). Results and discussion Skin color, weight loss, and respiratory activity of fruits picked commercially immature The skin color of the immature-harvested fruits (Tab. 1) changed over the days. Between the first and fifth days postharvest, there was a 27.51% decrease in ºhue, with the fruit skin shifting from green (ºhue values between 90 and 180) to a color tending to yellow (ºhue values between 0 and 90), which remained until the end of the experimental period. Chroma was 56.71% higher at 5 d postharvest, indi- cating that the skin was a more intense (or “purer”) yellow. Because of yellowing or degreening, the skin was lighter, with higher lightness values (closer to 100) seen after the 4 d postharvest. The change in the color of the commercially immature-harvested “coquinho azedo” fruits was due to their ripening over the 7 d of study. This was mentioned by Lima et al. (2010), who stated that the yellow color is an indication of ripeness in “coquinho azedo”. Additionally, according to Spoto et al. (2020), changes in color allow the consumer to identify the maturity of fruits. Fruit ripening results in color changes due to biosynthesis, degradation and appearance of pigments, events catalyzed by enzymes activated at this stage of fruit development (Kapoor et al., 2022). 72 Agron. Colomb. 40(1) 2022 Carotenoids are pigments present in green leaves and fruits, red, yellow and orange f lowers, roots, and seeds, whose biosynthesis begins with the production of phytoene by the condensation of two molecules of geranylgeranyl diphosphate by the enzyme phytoene synthase (PSY) (Gonzalez-Jorge et al., 2013). Saini et al. (2015) mentioned that, after their biosynthesis, the main carotenoids accu- mulate in specialized plastids, chromoplasts, chloroplasts or leucoplasts, and the main carotenoids present in yellow- orange fruits are β-carotene and α-carotene. Additionally, Gonzalez-Jorge et al. (2013) argued that the concentration of carotenoids can also be regulated by enzymatic degrada- tion (carotenoid cleavage dioxygenases) in plastids. Fresh weight loss was significantly inf luenced by the days postharvest, fitting a quadratic model and reaching a maxi- mum value of 13.42% at 7 d postharvest (Fig. 1). Although most fruits have their quality compromised when they lose 5 to 10% of moisture (Chitarra & Chitarra, 2005), our results suggest that the final percentage of fresh weight loss in the fruits did not cause them to wilt. Ŷfwl= -5.987781 + 5.127510x - 0.336262x2 R2 = 0.9860 Fr es h w ei gh t l os s (% ) Days after harvest 8.0 7.0 6.0 5.0 4.0 3.0 2.0 1.0 0.0 9.0 10.0 11.0 12.0 13.0 14.0 15.0 16.0 2 3 654 7 FIGURE 1. Fresh weight loss (%) in “coquinho azedo” (B. capitata) fruits harvested at the “commercially immature” stage and stored at an ave- rage temperature of 26.55ºC and 79.43% relative humidity. Significance of the quadratic model at P<0.05. R es pi ra to ry a ct iv ity ( m g C O 2 kg -1 h -1 ) Days after harvest 80 90 100 110 120 130 140 21 3 654 7 A C O 2 (% ) Days after harvest 1.5 1.2 0.9 0.6 0.3 0.0 1.8 2.1 2.4 2.7 3.0 3.3 21 3 654 7 B Fruits Atmosphere FIGURE 2. A) Respiratory activity and B) CO2 production of “coquinho azedo” (B. capitata) fruits harvested at the “commercially immatu- re” stage of maturity, during 7 d of storage at average temperature of 26.55ºC and 79.43% relative humidity. TABLE 1. Instrumental color of “coquinho azedo” (B. capitata) fruits har- vested at a “commercially immature” stage and stored at an average temperature of 26.55ºC and 79.43% relative humidity. Days after harvest Lightness Chroma °hue 1 57.64 b 37.09 e 103.98 a 2 59.28 b 39.43 de 99.96 ab 3 60.05 b 42.31 edc 92.48 abc 4 64.83 a 51.71 cdb 81.54 bcd 5 65.03 a 55.97 cba 75.97 cde 6 65.31 a 58.25 ba 73.05 ed 7 64.88 a 58.91 a 71.94 e Medians followed by the same lowercase letter do not differ from each other by Dunn’s non- parametric test at 5% significance. The transpiration caused by the difference in vapor pres- sure between the plant tissue and the surrounding atmo- sphere compromises fruit quality, inducing loss of fresh weight (Khaliq et al., 2015). Coatings on the fruit surface can reduce transpiration and the consequent fresh weight losses, as observed by the authors in mango. Similarly, fruits of Physalis peruviana L. (cape gooseberry) packed in a PET tray with cast PP film showed reduced weight loss (Garavito et al., 2022). Respiratory rate decreased between the 1 and 2 d of stor- age, with a subsequent increase until the 5 d, followed by a decline until the last day, in both analyzed methods (Figs. 2A-B). This behavior suggests a climacteric pattern, since, after harvest, climacteric fruits exhibit a significant increase in respiratory activity and rapid ripening, with color changes, increases in sugar concentration and texture changes (Chitarra & Chitarra, 2005). In non-climacteric fruits, after harvest, there is a decrease in respiratory ac- tivity, regardless of the stage of development at which they were harvested (Spoto et al. 2020). 73Martineli, Castricini, Santos, Pereira, and Maranhão: Quality of Butia capitata fruits harvested at different maturity stages Respiratory activity and percentage CO2 of fruits picked commercially immature (7 d postharvest) and ripe (1 d postharvest) There was no significant difference in respiratory activity and percentage CO2 of the commercially immature-har- vested fruits at 7 d postharvest and ripe-harvested fruits 1 d postharvest (Tab. 2). Considering that as the fruit ripens its respiratory rate generally decreases (Saltveit, 2016), it can be assumed that, in terms of these evaluations, the immature-harvested “coquinho azedo” is able to complete its ripening in a similar way to the fruits that ripened on the plant. Therefore, anticipating the harvest is not detrimental from the maturation standpoint. TABLE 2. Respiratory activity (mg CO2 kg -1 h-1) and CO2 production (%) of “coquinho azedo” (B. capitata) harvested “ripe” (1 d postharvest) and 7 d after harvesting the fruits “commercially immature”. Characteristics Degrees of maturity at harvest Commercially immature* Ripe CV (%) Respiratory activity 110.18 ±7.65 a 123.64 ±3.49 a 10.40 CO2 production 1.89 ±0.10 a 2.52 ±0.28 a 22.86 Means of six replicates ± standard error. Means followed by the same letter in the rows do not differ by the t-test at 5% significance. *Evaluation performed at 7 d postharvest. Physical and chemical characteristics of pulp from fruits picked at different degrees of maturity As for pulp color (Tab. 3), at 7 d postharvest, the commer- cially immature-harvested fruits had a higher lightness value than those that were harvested ripe. The chroma in the pulp of ripe-harvested fruits was higher, whereas the pulp color hue was similar between the fruits of both groups. The yellowish color of the fruit pulp indicates that both fruit groups were ripe, corroborating Lima et al. (2010). Nonetheless, due to the higher lightness (although this difference was not visually observable) and chroma values in the ripe-harvested “coquinho azedo”, their pulp color was a lighter and more intense yellow shade. During the ripening of “coquinho azedo” fruits, the change from greenish to yellowish color is due to the unmasking of preexisting pigments by the degradation of chlorophylls and synthesis of carotenoids (Maduwanthi & Marapana, 2019). In addition, according to Li and Yuan (2013), the yellowish color of the fruits is due to the synthesis and de- posit of carotenoids in the chromoplasts, with β-carotene being the predominant carotenoid in “coquinho-azedo” (Faria et al., 2011). The pH of the immature-harvested fruits was significantly higher, with a value inversely proportional to titratable acidity. At 7 d postharvest, this fruit category exhibited a lower citric acid content. Following the same response, the ripe-harvested “coquinho azedo” had a higher soluble sol- ids content. Soluble solids are mostly composed of sugars, which makes the sweetness of a fruit dependent on this trait (Cao et al., 2015). During the ripening of fruits in a non-refrigerated environment, there is an increasing ac- cumulation of organic acids and sugars within the vacuole (Ventura et al., 2022), which will be used in respiration or in the conversion to sugars (Tosun et al., 2008). In addi- tion, during ripening, the partial degradation of the cell wall contributes to the increase in sugar levels in the fruits (Canton et al., 2020). In the commercially immature-har vested “coquinho azedo”, the fruits, possibly, continued the expected respi- ratory process after harvest, with the use of organic acids and sugars, which possibly explains the lower acidity and soluble solids contents in the commercially immature- harvested fruits at 7 d postharvest. The higher soluble solids content in the ripe-harvested “coquinho azedo” can be explained by the longer time the fruit remained on the plant, which favors a greater accumulation of sugars. This phenomenon was demon- strated in papaya, where the soluble solids content in the fruits remained practically constant after harvest despite the change in skin color, loss of firmness, among others (Gutierrez & Watanabe, 2017). The soluble solids content determines the degree of sweetness of fruits (Spoto et al., 2020) due to the higher proportion of soluble sugars in their composition (Fernandes et al., 2017). In the literature, average soluble solids levels of 7.70 and 9.60 ºBrix were re- ported in mature coconuts (Souza, 2016; Souza et al., 2018). The SS/TA ratio was significantly the same in fruits har- vested at different ripening degrees. According to Spoto et al. (2020), the SS/TA ratio is a criterion for the evaluation of f lavor, which can express the degree of fruit ripeness. TABLE 3. Lightness, chroma and ºhue of “coquinho azedo” (B. capitata) fruits harvested “ripe” (1 d postharvest) and harvested “commercially immature” (7 d postharvest). Characteristics Degrees of maturity at harvest Commercially immature** Ripe CV (%) Lightness 65.10 a 64.06 b 1.18 Chroma 58.59 b 63.33 a 4.22 ºhue 72.07 a 72.02 a 2.53 Means followed by the same letter in the rows do not differ by the t-test at 5% significance. **Evaluation performed at 7 d postharvest. 74 Agron. Colomb. 40(1) 2022 Chitarra and Chitarra (2005) stated that the SS/TA ratio provides a good idea of the balance between the soluble solids content and titratable acidity, constituting a more representative measure than the evaluation of these traits in isolation. Therefore, it is likely that the “coquinho azedo” did not have their f lavor altered 7 d after being harvested commercially immature. Ascorbic acid, also known as vitamin C, is an important compound that has antioxidant and metabolic functions (Cruz-Rus et al., 2011), and its content was higher in the ripe-harvested fruits. In contrast, the total carotenoid content did not differ between the fruits harvested ripe or commercially immature. After harvest, the concentration of organic acids in the fruits commonly declines due to their use as a respiratory substrate (Chitarra & Chitarra, 2005), which may explain the lower ascorbic acid content in the immature-harvested “coquinho-azedo”. Greater synthesis of ascorbic acid in papaya fruit occurred in parallel with higher respiratory activity in the fruits, with a subsequent decrease during storage (Maringgal et al., 2021). This is because, as stated by Mellidou and Kanellis (2017), ascorbic acid participates in the synthesis of ethylene as a cofactor of 1-aminocyclo- propane-1-carboxylate oxidase (ACC oxidase). The similar total carotenoids contents in both studied fruit groups may be due to the continued biosynthesis of this phytochemical 7 d after the fruits were harvested commercially immature. This agrees with the findings of Rodriguez-Amaya (2001) that the carotenoids content intensifies with fruit ripening. Phenolic contents were higher in the immature-harvested fruits, which showed approximately 55% more of these compounds. With respect to phenolic compounds, the literature reports that in citrus fruits, the concentration of f lavonoids (a specific class of phenols in vegetables) decreases with increasing fruit size and maturity. This statement corroborates Mcharek and Hanchi (2017), who observed a reduction in the concentration of phenols throughout the ripening of lime. Kosar et al. (2004) did not observe significant differences in the f lavonoid content of green and ripe strawberries. In the present study, the total phenolic content in the “coquinho azedo” was higher than that reported by Nascimento et al. (2020) in fully ripe fruits. The higher total phenolic content in this study may have been due to the two successive extraction steps used, which resulted in more compounds being extracted. Phenolic compounds are aromatic organic compounds including secondary metabolites, which determine the color and f lavor of fruits, in addition to actively participat- ing in the mechanism of resistance to insects and diseases (Milind, 2010). In a study with guava, papaya and mango, Oliveira et al. (2011) stated that these metabolites are the antioxidant compounds that most contribute to antioxidant activity in these fruits. Therefore, the “coquinho azedo” can be a good source of natural oxidants for human consump- tion, especially if the fruits are harvested commercially immature and consumed 7 d postharvest. TABLE 4. Means of pH, titratable acidity (TA-g citric acid 100 g-1), soluble solids (SS-ºBrix), SS/TA ratio, ascorbic acid (mg 100 g-1), total carote- noids (mg 100 g-1) and total phenols in the pulp of “coquinho azedo” (B. capitata) fruits harvested at different degrees of maturity and evaluated at different times after harvest. Characteristics Degrees of maturity at harvest Commercially immature** Ripe CV (%) Respiratory activity 110.18 a 123.64 a 10.40 pH 3.80 a 3.25 b 0.94 Titratable acidity (TA) 1.39 b 2.32 a 7.00 Soluble solids (SS) 4.45 b 6.53 a 9.19 SS/ TA ratio 3.21 a 2.84 a 10.36 Ascorbic acid 7.51 b 52.91 a 10.31 Total carotenoids 15.42 a 19.12 a 19.90 Total phenolic compounds 729.99 a 408.26 b 18.20 Means followed by the same letter in the rows do not differ by the t-test at 5 % significance. **Evaluation performed at 7 d postharvest. Conclusions “Coquinho-azedo” fruits harvested commercially imma- ture had an increase in respiratory activity after harvest, with changes in skin color and fresh weight losses of over 10% throughout storage. At the end of the ripening period after harvest, the color (⁰hue), respiratory activity, SS/TA ratio and total carotenoids in “coquinho azedo” resembled those of fruits that ripened on the plant. “Coquinho-azedo” fruits harvested fully ripe had higher titratable acidity, soluble solids and ascorbic acid contents than the fruits harvested commercially immature, when ripe. The total phenolic content of “coquinho-azedo” fruits harvested at the commercially immature stage, when ripe, was 55% higher than that of the ripe-harvested fruits. Acknowledgments The authors thank the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) of Brazil, the Research 75Martineli, Castricini, Santos, Pereira, and Maranhão: Quality of Butia capitata fruits harvested at different maturity stages Support Foundation of Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG) and the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel - Brazil (CAPES) - (Finance code 001). 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