The Effects of Temperature Treatments on the Disinfestation and Storage of Dry Figs of Estahban

Experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects of heat and cold treatments on the disinfestation of dry figs from Estahban. Tow types of packing bags (with or without holes), two storage conditions including one at 23oC and one cold storage condition (10oC and 2oC), 9 heat and cold treatment durations (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 10, 15, 20 and 25 hrs) and 13 temperature treatments [23, 45, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 45+(-25), 50+(-25) and 60+(-25) oC] were used in these experiments. The results showed that Indian meal moth, Plodia interpunctella, which is a major pest in dry fig storage, can be satistfactorily controlled by packing figs in plastic bags with a thickness of 0.24 mm after suitable temperature treatment. Cold storage at 2oC significantly controlled all developmental stages of moths at storage. Temperature treatments at 60oC for 7hrs or more, at 65oC for 6hrs or more, and at -25oC for 15hrs or more were found to be capable of controling pest most satisfactorily without changing fruit external quality.