There is no established minimum quality standard for peaches and nectarines. Ethylene application to fruit harvested at the US-Mature maturity will only ripen the fruit more uniformly without speeding up the rate of ripening. A few cultivars may need to be exposed to ethylene to ripen properly. There are approximately 350 peach and nectarine cultivars in California. Market life varies among them and it is strongly affected by temperature management.
Cultural practices have an important role in determining fruit quality and storage potential.
Small size fruit grown in the outside canopy position have a longer market life than large size fruit grown in the inside position. Physiological Disorders Internal Breakdown or Chilling Injury. This physiological problem is characterized by flesh internal browning, flesh mealiness, flesh bleeding, failure to ripen and flavor loss. These symptoms develop during ripening after a cold storage period, thus, are usually detected by consumers. It is a comestic problem affecting only the skin of peaches and nectarines.