Apple colour, size, taste,
texture and price
Roger Harker
INTERPOMA, November 24, 2016
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
New Zealand Horticulture
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Everybody lives in their own flavour-world
» Genetics of flavour perception
» Peak of multiple significant
associations around 29Mb on
chromosome 6
» Genetic associations found for
2-heptanone, isobutyraldehyde,
b-damascenone and b-ionone).
» Use human genome databases
to global variability in consumer
sensitivity
MacRae et al. (2013)
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Uniqueness
Focusing on ‘Uniqueness’: ‘the characteristics
or key elements which differentiate it from other
products of its category and, therefore,
constitute its exclusiveness.’
»
»
»
»
Familiarity / Novelty
Situational appropriateness
Attitudinal and emotional product associations
Eating occasions
Jaeger et al (2011)
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Definitions: Taste & Flavour
Eating Quality: all those characteristics of a food that lead
a consumer to be satisfied with the eating experience:
» Texture: The sensory manifestation of the
structure of the food:
»
»
»
Mechanical properties (e.g. hardness)
Mouthfeel / geometric properties (e.g. smooth, gritty)
Juiciness
» Flavour: The impressions perceived via the
chemical senses from a product in the mouth:
»
»
»
Tastes – perceptions caused by soluble substances
in the mouth (salty, sweet, sour, bitter, umami).
Aromatics – olfactory perceptions caused by volatile
substances released from the product in the mouth
via the nasal passage.
The chemical feeling factors – that stimulate nerve ends
in the mouth and nasal cavities (spice heat, cooling).
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Every apple we grow should be one we can sell
» Eating quality
» Texture
» Flavour
»
»
»
»
Liking
Willingness to buy
Repurchase
Price
» Taste (sweetness,
acidity, bitterness)
» Aromatics
» Appearance
» Cosmetic
» Food safety
» Size
» Convenience
» Value
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Eating Quality: Firmness and Crispness
Harker et al (2002a, 2002b; 2006) and De Belie et al (2002)
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Predicting consumer liking for apples
Harker et al (2008)
Implications: New cultivars
Cultivar 1
Cultivar 2
Firmness →
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Implications: New cultivars
Cultivar 1
Cultivar 2
» Genetics (Cultivars)
» Environment (Region
& Site)
» Orchard Management
» Harvest & Storage
Firmness →
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Resource partitioning as indices of quality
»
»
»
»
It is better to ensure that every fruit you grow can be marketed
Growing for quality is preferable to sorting for quality
Resource partitioning is important
Dry matter content may allow prediction of quality at harvest and
potentially earlier in fruit development
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Consumer responses to DM categories:
‘Royal Gala’
Palmer et al (2010)
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Consumer responses to DM categories:
‘Royal Gala’
Difference of 1.5
units → 85% of
consumers will
choose High over
Low DM apples
← 92% of consumers find apple acceptable
← ‘Probably will buy’
← ‘Possibly will not buy’
Palmer et al (2010)
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Experimental auctions:
Apples that look good but taste bad
2
Tasted
1.8
Amount Bid ($)
1.6
1.4
1.2
1
0.8
0.6
0.4
0.2
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
Bidding Round
“Even though I thought that the old apples were nicer in the tasting
trial, I still suspect that the new ones would be better overall”
Lund et al (2006)
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Monetary value of kiwifruit eating quality
Jaeger et al (2011)
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Practical Industry Experience
» Kiwifruit
» Tomatoes
» Apples
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Flavour: sweet, sour and aromatic apples
» Apple preference maps suggest a hierarchy that is:
» Texture (preferences for firm and juicy apples)
» Taste (preferences for sweet high acid and sweet low acid apples)
» Aromatics
» For some cultivars ‘consumer acceptability’ of firm apples is
further enhanced if they are also higher in sugars (SSC), but
these relationships are cultivar specific
» It is difficult to quantify the role of the aromatic component of
apple flavour?
» Aromatics are confounded with other aspects of fruit biology
» Poor basic understanding of what triggers consumers’ sense that
something is different/wrong
Harker et al (2005; 2008) and Gunther et al (2015)
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Appearance and size
»
»
»
»
Vison is a predominate human sense (sets expectations)
There are clear ‘rules’ about preferred colours, shapes, symmetry
Consumers buy with their eyes
Consumers become attuned to appearance of produce that they
regularly see when shopping
» They discard the unusual
» They can detect blemishes quickly
» Poor appearance is often associated with poor food safety
» Texture and flavour are dominant once fruit has been tasted (in
experiments)
» Stated preferences are often weakly held (in experiments)
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Pears: shape, colour and russet
Gamble et al (2006)
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Beta value of attribute (where a large positive
or negative value indicates greater importance
than small values)
Pears: shape, colour and russet
1.08*
1.09*
1.0
0.82*
0.8
least preferred
most preferred
0.85*
0.6
0.44*
0.4
0.2
0.0
-0.2
0.07
Oblong Pyriform Round Green Yellow
Red
None
Some Lots
-0.06
-0.31*
-0.4
-0.6
-0.59*
-0.8
-0.75*
-1.0
-1.05* -1.04*
pear factor (Australia only)
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Opportunity for new segments associated
with fruit which invoke no expectation
» Expectations of round and red
pears were unformed, and thus
these pears were less likely to be
chosen as either most preferred
or least preferred.
» But consumers were willing to
identify the most liked red-skinned
pear, and
» Consumers placed bids to
purchase red-skinned pears
to take home with them.
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Disorders: eyetracking and consumer rejection
Percentage of consumers rejecting to purchase
apples at the same supermarket again (%)
100
80
60
y = 0.9382x + 4.3335
R² = 0.9649
40
20
0
0
20
40
60
80
Percentage of consumers who fixated their gaze on the disorder (%)
Jaeger et al (2006)
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
100
Size
» Perceptions of value
» Convenience and waste
» For children and for adults
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Size
» Innovation: breaking all the rules
» Rockit™ apples
» Role of packaging
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
Summary
»
»
»
»
Eating quality (texture, flavour, taste)
Appearance
Size
Price
Eating quality is of primary importance. Orchardists have control over
eating quality through selection of cultivars, management of orchards
and fruit maturity at harvest. The value of apples to consumers is
defined by the interplay between eating quality and price.
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
References
Slide 3: McRae JF, Jaeger SR, Bava CM, Beresford MK, Hunter
D,1 Jia Y, Chheang SL, Jin D, Peng M, Gamble JC, Atkinson KR,
Axten LG, Paisley AG, Williams L, Tooman L, Pineau B, Rouse SA,
Newcomb RD 2013. Identification of Regions Associated with
Variation in Sensitivity to Food-Related Odors in the Human
Genome. Current Biology 23: 1–5.
Slide 4: Jaeger SR, et al. (2011) The food choice kaleidoscope.
A framework for structured description of product, place and person
as sources of variation in food choices. Appetite, 56(2), 412-423
Slide 7: Harker FR, Gunson FA, Triggs CM 2006. Apple firmness:
creating a tool for product evaluation based on a sensoryinstrumental relationship. Postharvest Biology and Technology
39(3): 327-330.
Slide 7: De Belie N, Harker FR, De Baerdemaeker J 2002.
Crispness judgement of Royal Gala apples based on chewing
sounds. Biosystems Engineering 81: 297-303.
Slide 7: Harker FR, Gunson FA, Brookfield PL, White A 2002.
An apple a day: the influence of memory on consumer judgment of
quality. Food Quality and Preference 13: 173-179.
Slide 7: Harker FR, Maindonald J, Murray SH, Gunson FA, Hallett
IC, Walker SB 2002. Sensory interpretation of instrumental
measurements 1: texture of apple fruit. Postharvest Biology and
Technology 24: 225-239.
Slide 8: Harker FR, Kupferman EM, Marin AB, Gunson FA, Triggs
CM 2008. Eating quality standards for apples based on consumer
preferences. Postharvest Biology and Technology 50: 70-78.
the Science of Food and Agriculture 90: 2586–2594.
Slide 14: Lund CM, Jaeger SR, Amos RL, Brookfield P, Harker FR
2006. Tradeoffs between emotional and sensory perceptions of
freshness influence the price consumers will pay for apples: results
from an experimental market. Postharvest Biology and Technology
41: 172-180.
Slide 15: Jaeger SR, Harker R, Triggs CM, Gunson A, Campbell
RL, Jackman R, Requejo-Jackman C 2011. Determining consumer
purchase intentions: The importance of dry matter, size and price of
kiwifruit. Journal of Food Science 76: S177–S184.
Slide 17: Harker FR, Jaeger SR, Gamble J, Richardson-Harman N,
2005. Consumer acceptance of new horticultural crops. The
Compact Fruit Tree 38(2): 26-30.
Slide 17: Günther CS, Marsh KB, Winz RA, Harker FR, Wohlers
MW, White A, Goddard MR 2015. The Impact of Cold Storage and
Ethylene on Volatile Ester Production and Aroma Perception in
'Hort16A' Kiwifruit. Food Chemistry 169: 5-12.
Slide 19: Gamble J, Jaeger SR, Harker FR 2006. Preferences in
pear appearance and response to novelty among Australian and
New Zealand consumers. Postharvest Biology and Technology
41(1): 38-47.
Slide 22: Jaeger SR, Antúnez L, Ares G, Johnston JW, Hall M,
Harker FR 2016. Consumers’ visual attention to fruit defects and
disorders: A case study with apple images. Postharvest Biology and
Technology 116: 36-44.
Slide 12: Palmer JW, Harker FR, Tustin DS, Johnston J 2010. Fruit
dry matter concentration: a new quality metric for apples. Journal of
The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited
www.plantandfood.co.nz
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