The tomato is one of the most consumed vegetables in the world. In the northeast region of Brazil, it is common the trade of industrial cultivars for fresh consumption. This study aimed to evaluate some quality characteristics of two hybrids of tomato ('Mariana' and 'SM -16') at four maturity stages (green - 1, salad - 2, colored - 3 and red - 4). After harvest, fruits were transported to the Laboratory of Food Technology of the Federal Rural University of Semi-arid, where they were selected for uniformity of maturity and evaluated for longitudinal and transverse diameter, fresh weight, firmness, soluble solids, pH, vitamin C and total sugars. The experimental design was completely randomized, in a 2 x 4 factorial (two cultivars and four maturity stages). Data were subjected to analysis of variance and means compared by the Tukey test at 5%. In the fresh fruit of hybrid 'SM-16', transverse diameter and firmness were higher than in the hybrid 'Mariana'. There was an increase of fresh weight at the maturation stage 3, and a decrease in firmness and pH of the pulp and fruit ripening. The vitamin C content of fruits increased from stage 1 to 2, and the hybrid 'Mariana' showed the highest content of vitamin C.
Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.; maturity stages; vitamin C; total sugars
