Vitamin Content of Ethylene-Treated and Untreated Tomatoes

Abstract

The vitamin A, B, and C content of green tomatoes picked at different stages of development was compared with that of parallel samples which had been treated with ethylene. Tomatoes naturally ripened on the vines were a better source of vitamins A, B, and C than any of the others studied, either treated or untreated. The vitamin A and B content of the different lots of green tomatoes, treated or untreated, was practically the same. The vitamin C value of tomatoes seems to increase as the fruit develops and ethylene treatment of green tomatoes produced no significant change in their low vitamin C potency.