What causes the different colours of peppers?
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The green, yellow, orange and red colours originate from the carotenoid pigments produced in the fruit during ripening. More than 30 different pigments have been identified in pepper fruits. These pigments include the green chlorophylls a and b; the yellow-orange lutein, zeaxanthin, violaxanthin, antheraxanthin, B-cryptoxanthin and B-carotene; and the red pigments capsanthin, capsorubin and cryptocapsin, which are found only in pepper fruits. The red colour in pepper comes from the carotenoids capsanthin and capsorubin, while the yellow-orange colour is from B-carotene and violaxanthin. Capsanthin contributes up to 60% of the total carotenoids. Capsanthin and capsorubin increase proportionally with advanced stages of ripeness, with capsanthin being the more stable of the two. When fruit turns red the red pigments mask the presence of the yellow pigments. When the fruit is yellow or orange there is no red pigment. The amount of carotenoids in fruit tissue depends on factors such as cultivar, maturity stage and growing conditions. |
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