Consumer responses to fruit quality of 'Jonagold' apples treated with postharvest application of 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) under air and controlled atmosphere storage conditions

Commercial postharvest applications of 1-methylcyclopropene (1-MCP) to retain quality of 'Jonagold' apples of different harvest maturities and stored in air and controlled atmosphere conditions were investigated in three consecutive seasons in Southwest Germany. This cultivar is widely planted and most popular in this fruit-growing region. Fruit samples were removed from storage at bi- or three-monthly intervals during maximal 9 months storage periods. Thereafter, fruit were frequently evaluated over up to 10 days at 20 degrees C to link instrumental data of ex-store fruit quality to sensory descriptions from consumer preference surveys. Fruit quality declined with storage duration; however, the degree of quality loss was much less severe under all storage conditions when fruit was treated with 1-MCP. Ethylene-dependent ripening processes such as softening, yellowing of the background colour and loss of titratable acidity were significantly more reduced in 1-MCP-treated 'Jonagold' apples than in untreated controls, concomitantly with lower rates of fruit respiration and fruit ethylene production. Data showed a good agreement between instrumental measurements and consumer scores for all evaluated fruit quality parameters. We conclude that flesh firmness and titratable acidity were the most important drivers of consumer preference. Interestingly, consumers, regardless of age and gender, preferred 1-MCP-treated fruit held in ultra-low oxygen storage. Although sensory evaluation studies are time-consuming and might have some flaws when attempting to generate representative results from consumer taste panels, they are a useful tool to assess product quality and consumer preference.