Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 September 2014
Introduction. A study on postharvest treatments of wild pepperswas carried out in Madagascar with the aim of describing the local practices and measuringtheir impacts on the quality of the products. Materials and methods. Fourdistinct pepper production systems (PPS) were observed, described and compared in twoseparate areas in East Madagascar. Major quality characteristics (piperine and essentialoil) of the peppercorns were assessed in samples collected in the four systems.Results and discussion. Two main postharvest processes (dry and wet) wereidentified. The wet process differed from the dry one in that it involved two specificoperations, blanching and sweating. The processes influenced the color of the pepper.Piperine contents were not affected by any of the pepper production systems, whereasessential oil contents were reduced by up to 27% by the wet process. After processing,piperine contents were up to eight times lower, whereas essential oil contents were up tosix times higher than the specifications of the standard ISO 959-1 for black pepper readyfor commercialization. Conclusion. Two main processes (dry and wet) fortreatment of peppercorns in Madagascar were identified and described. The dry process,with two steps less, appeared to be easier to implement and more respectful to theproduct. Improving maturity control and processing according to the quality expected bythe markets will be necessary to promote Malagasy peppers.