Correlation between sensory and instrumental measurements of standard and crisp‐texture southern highbush blueberries ( Vaccinium corymbosum L. interspecific hybrids)

Abstract

BACKGROUNDFruit texture is a primary selection trait in southern highbush blueberry (SHB) breeding to increase fresh fruit postharvest quality and consumer acceptance. A novel crisp fruit texture has recently been identified among SHB germplasm. In this study, we developed a common set of descriptors that align sensory evaluation of blueberry fruit texture with instrumental measures that could be used for quantitative measurements during pre- and postharvest evaluation.RESULTSSensory and instrumental characteristics were measured in 36 and 49 genotypes in 2010 and 2011, respectively. A trained sensory panel evaluated fresh fruit based on five common textural attributes in 2010 and 2011: bursting energy, flesh firmness, skin toughness, juiciness and mealiness. Instrumental measures of compression and bioyield forces were significantly different among cultivars and correlated with sensory scores for bursting energy, flesh firmness and skin toughness (R > 0.7, except skin toughness in 2011), but correlations with sensory scores for juiciness and mealiness were low (R < 0.4).CONCLUSIONThe results of sensory and instrumental measures supported the use of both compression and bioyield force measures in distinguishing crisp from standard-texture genotypes, and suggest that crisp texture in SHB is related to the sensory perception of bursting energy, flesh firmness and skin toughness.

Cell wall composition of the skin and flesh tissue of crisp and standard texture southern highbush blueberry genotypes

“…The BF of the three standard texture genotypes ('Springhigh', 'Star', 'Windsor') were not significantly different from each other, and were less than all four crisp genotypes ('Sweetcrisp', FL06-561, FL06-562, and FL98-325). These results are consistent with those from Blaker et al [1], where BF of several crisp and standard texture genotypes were highly correlated with sensory evaluations of texture by a trained panel.…”

“…Selection of these genotypes was based on texture classification by a trained sensory panel to identify standard and crisp texture genotypes [1].…”

“…Three southern highbush blueberry (Vaccinium corymbosum L. interspecific hybrids) cultivars ('Bluecrisp', 'Sweetcrisp', and 'Indigocrisp™') released by the University of Florida (UF) in 1997, 2005, and 2013, respectively, are considered to have a unique crisp texture [1,2]. Many current selections in the UF blueberry breeding program are also considered to have a similar crisp phenotype, and other cultivars such as 'Reveille', 'Dolores', and 'Hortblue Poppins' have descriptions that indicate they would be classified as having crisp texture [1,3,4].…”

“…Many current selections in the UF blueberry breeding program are also considered to have a similar crisp phenotype, and other cultivars such as 'Reveille', 'Dolores', and 'Hortblue Poppins' have descriptions that indicate they would be classified as having crisp texture [1,3,4]. Berries with this crisp texture are of particular interest due to their enhanced eating quality, prolonged postharvest life, and potential value for mechanical harvesting for fresh marketed blueberries [5][6][7][8].…”

Breeding Trait Priorities of the Blueberry Industry in the United States and Canada

“…Despite the relevance of this trait in the blueberry production and distribution chain, it is still unclear which specific fruit texture characteristics-such as crispness, hardness, juiciness, and mealinessare most critical for overall firmness and extended shelf life, consumer preference, and resistance to bruising. Alternative highthroughput methods based on bioyield force (Blaker et al, 2014) and near-infrared hyperspectral reflectance imaging (Jiang et al, 2016) have been developed to evaluate fruit damage. Mechanical force methods such as the texture analyzer have been used to study fruit texture characteristics associated with extended shelf life, but this method has not been correlated with resistance to mechanical fruit damage (Giongo et al, 2013).…”