*4.2. Appearance*

Appearance is the most important quality parameter for the consumer's acceptance. Figure 3 shows the appearance differences among treatments after 3 and 15 d from storage of green bean samples. It has been reported that the quality and acceptability of stored shredded carrots was maintained by exogenous AsA application [35], which agrees with our result (Figure 1A). This could be due to the inhibitory effects of AsA on chlorophyll degradation, ripening, and senescence. A sensory evaluation of the overall acceptability of the products, over time, and according to the proposed treatments, would be desirable. Our results shown in Figure 1A agree with a number of previous studies [8,36] that reported that TTO treatment maintained the overall acceptability and appearance of strawberry fruit stored at 20 ◦C for 3 d. Exogenous application of PMO has been shown to retard ripening, maintain appearance and suppress the decay of Mangosteen fruit [37], primarily due to the preservative effect of EOs as an antioxidant as its major components (Table 1). However, the synergistic or antagonistic influence of one compound in a small proportion of the mixture must be recognized [38].

**Figure 3.** Green bean samples treated with ethanol, AsA, PMO, TTO, and control after (**A**) 3 d and (**B**) 15 d of storage at 5 ◦C.
