<abstract xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>Fruit quality attributes are influenced by environmental, agronomic and genetic factors; both cultivars and growing conditions can vary substantially between UK production and imported fruit. This study aimed to record and dissect the most relevant fruit quality traits for berries imported into the UK in the winter months. Blackberry, blueberry, raspberry and strawberry fruit were imported from 11 countries into a Kent-based packhouse (UK) or purchased from major retailers between December 2018 and March 2019. Multiple fruit quality components were assessed for relative contribution towards a high “overall assessment” fruit quality score. It was found that strawberry and blackberry overall scores were affected by sweetness perception, whereas blueberry and raspberry organoleptics are more complex, with overall scores influenced by flavor perception. Multiple raspberry and strawberry fruit quality traits were found to be associated with genotypic differences, indicating a promising potential for genetic improvement through breeding. By contrast, the study findings suggest that there is less potential for genetic improvement in blueberry, and that the environment may have a large effect on blueberry fruit quality traits.</p></abstract>

Fruit quality attributes are influenced by environmental, agronomic and genetic factors; both cultivars and growing conditions can vary substantially between UK production and imported fruit. This study aimed to record and dissect the most relevant fruit quality traits for berries imported into the UK in the winter months. Blackberry, blueberry, raspberry and strawberry fruit were imported from 11 countries into a Kent-based packhouse (UK) or purchased from major retailers between December 2018 and March 2019. Multiple fruit quality components were assessed for relative contribution towards a high “overall assessment” fruit quality score. It was found that strawberry and blackberry overall scores were affected by sweetness perception, whereas blueberry and raspberry organoleptics are more complex, with overall scores influenced by flavor perception. Multiple raspberry and strawberry fruit quality traits were found to be associated with genotypic differences, indicating a promising potential for genetic improvement through breeding. By contrast, the study findings suggest that there is less potential for genetic improvement in blueberry, and that the environment may have a large effect on blueberry fruit quality traits.

Pathway Analysis to Determine Factors Contributing to Overall Quality Scores in Four Berry Crops

Journal of Horticultural Research

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Fruit quality attributes are influenced by environmental, agronomic and genetic factors; both cultivars and growing conditions can vary substantially between...

Pathway Analysis to Determine Factors Contributing to Overall Quality Scores in Four Berry Crops

Published Online: Dec 18, 2020

Page range: 35 - 42

Received: Jul 01, 2020

Accepted: Nov 01, 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/johr-2020-0025

Keywords
benchmarking analysis, fruit quality, multiple fruit quality components, overall assessment, organoleptic assessment

© 2020 Helen Cockerton et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Pathway Analysis to Determine Factors Contributing to Overall Quality Scores in Four Berry Crops

Published Online: Dec 18, 2020

Page range: 35 - 42

Received: Jul 01, 2020

Accepted: Nov 01, 2020

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/johr-2020-0025

Keywordsbenchmarking analysis, fruit quality, multiple fruit quality components, overall assessment, organoleptic assessment

© 2020 Helen Cockerton et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
benchmarking analysis, fruit quality, multiple fruit quality components, overall assessment, organoleptic assessment