2019 ASHS Annual Conference

The blueberry commercial production is essential for the state of Georgia. Georgia’s industry consists of two of the main commercially grown blueberry types in the United States: southern highbush (SHB, Vaccinium corymbosum L. and V. darrowii Camp) and rabbiteye (RE, V. virgatum Aiton). There are various subjective opinions, within the industry, that SHB fruit quality is superior compared to that of RE, however few instrumental and consumer sensory tests have been conducted. The objectives of this study were to determine the consumer overall liking preference of the same SHB and RE cultivars that were collected during the 2016 and 2018 harvest season and determine whether cultivar overall liking was due to texture, skin toughness, firmness, seediness, flavor and aroma. Four SHB and two RE cultivars were collected from commercial packers in Alma, GA for both harvest seasons. SHB cultivars included ‘Camellia’, ‘Farthing’, ‘Star’, Legacy’; and RE cultivars included ‘Vernon’ and ‘Alapaha’. Samples were served to consumers at room temperature using a three-digit binding code for each cultivar and a Latin Square design. Consumer acceptability was scored using a 9-point hedonic scale (1= extremely dislike and 9= extremely like) for ‘liking/acceptability’ of aroma, flavor, texture, skin toughness, seediness and overall liking. Three SHB cultivars, ‘Legacy’, ‘Camellia’ and ‘Farthing’, were highly accepted for their flavor (6.47-7.47), aroma (6.39-6.72), texture (6.89-7.20), skin toughness (6.81-7.36), fruit firmness (7.05-7.55), and seediness (6.23-7) for both years. 2016 and 2018 ‘Alapaha’ and ‘Star’ and 2018 ‘Vernon’ were the least favored. SHB were preferred by consumers, for both years, due to their flavor, texture, crisp skin, and seediness. RE were preferred by consumers due to their aroma, however, disliked due to their mealy, seedy, and soft texture. These results suggest fruit quality characteristics may vary by harvest season, affecting consumer perception. This information may be useful to the blueberry industry to market specific cultivars within a type that maintain similar fruit quality characteristics throughout multiple harvest seasons.