Nondestructive determination of total soluble solid content and firmness in plums using near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy.
The fruit industry requires rapid, economical, and nondestructive methods for classifying fruit by internal quality, which can be built into the processing line. Total soluble solid content and firmness are the two indicators of plum internal quality that most affect consumer acceptance. These parameters are routinely evaluated using methods which involve destruction of the fruit; as a result, only control batches can be analyzed. The development of nondestructive analytical methods would enable the quality control of individual fruits. Near-IR spectroscopy (NIRS) was used to assess total soluble solid content (SSC, degrees Brix) and firmness (N) in intact plums. A total of 720 plums (Prunus salicina L. cv. 'African Pride', 'Black Diamond', 'Fortune', 'Laetitia', 'Larry Anne', 'Late Royal', 'Prime Time', 'Sapphire', and 'Songold') were used to obtain calibration models based on reference data and near-IR spectral data. Standard errors of cross-validation (SECV) and coefficients of determination for cross-validation (r(2)) were (0.77 degrees Brix; 0.83) for total soluble solids content and (2.54 N; 0.52) for firmness. Results suggest that NIRS technology enables fruit to be classified in terms of total soluble solid content and firmness, thus allowing increased sampling of each production batch and ensuring a given quality with greater precision and accuracy.
Paz
Patricia
P
Departamento de Bromatología y Tecnología de los Alimentos, Departamento de Producción Animal, Universidad de Córdoba, Campus de Rabanales, 14071 Córdoba, Spain.
Sánchez
María-Teresa
MT
Pérez-Marín
Dolores
D
Guerrero
José-Emilio
JE
Garrido-Varo
Ana
A
D000465:Algorithms; D002138:Calibration; D005638:Fruit / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000145:classification*; D027861:Prunus / Q000737:chemistry*; D011786:Quality Control; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D019265:Spectroscopy, Near-Infrared