Sensory quality of traditional and modern fresh market tomato varieties at different growing conditions: results from the TRADITOM project

Consumer acceptance of fresh tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is influenced by their sensory quality, which is defined by numerous traits relating to visual appearance, flavour (taste and aroma) and textural properties. Descriptive sensory analysis by trained panels coupled with instrumental measurements and a consumer preference test can establish the relative importance of the characteristics that drive acceptability, providing key elements for quality improvement and product diversification. In order to gain further knowledge on the factors influencing tomato sensory quality and consumers' preferences, within the framework of the European TRADITOM project (http://traditom.eu/), 17 traditional and modern fresh market tomato varieties (belonging to three typologies "Oxheart", "Marmande" and "Round") were selected, and different partially overlapping sets were grown and evaluated in France, Italy and Spain. Two different cultivation conditions were used in France (soilless under greenhouse vs. soil under plastic tunnel) and in Spain (open air vs. soil under greenhouse), while in Italy the products were evaluated at two different ripening stages. In each country fruit quality was assessed at three levels using consensus protocols: physico-chemical measurements, descriptive sensory analyses by trained panels, and consumer preference tests. For the hedonic tests, after the overall liking, consumers were asked to answer a Check-All-That-Apply (CATA) survey. The results obtained so far indicated that the sensory space observed for the products evaluated in France was wider than those observed in Italy and Spain, which was likely due to the presence in France of the "Round" group of varieties that were much firmer than other varieties, and to the stronger effect of the two different growing conditions used in France. Overall a strong genotype effect on consumer overall liking was observed; while the effect of different growing conditions on overall liking was either not significant (Spain), or was variety dependent (France). In general, "juicy", "sweet" and "aromatic" attributes were the main drivers of tomato liking, while "mealy texture" had a negative impact on consumers' preference.