The aim of this study was to compare certain important fruit quality parameters such as sugars, organic acids, total phenolic content, antioxidant capacity, and volatile compounds of 10 commercial strawberry cultivars grown in the research and experimental area in Yaltir Agricultural Company located in Adana provinces of Turkey. As for the sugar content of strawberry fruits, fructose was identified as the dominant sugar and the highest value (4.43%) was found in the cultivar “Rubygem”. In terms of organic acid, among the examined strawberry cultivars, “Calinda” had the greatest level of citric acid (711.45 mg g⁻¹). Regarding vitamin C content, the highest amount was found in the cultivar “Sabrina” (25.08 mg 100 g⁻¹). Ellagic acid was the main phenolic acid in all examined cultivars (except the “Plared” cultivar), and the highest amount was detected in the “Fortuna” cultivar (3.18 mg 100 g⁻¹). We found that the cultivar FL-127 had the highest total phenolic content (158.37 mg gallic acid equivalent 100 g⁻¹ fresh weight base). Regarding antioxidant capacities, the highest value (88.92%) was found in the cultivar Victory among all the cultivars studied. The detailed analysis of volatile compounds was performed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) and 34 compounds were detected. Among them, esters, acids, and alcohols were found to be the major volatile compounds in strawberry fruits. In conclusion, strawberry fruits belong to ten cultivars showed abundant phenolic compounds and at the same time have high antioxidant activity.

The main focus of our study was to investigate differences in nutritional (dry matter, soluble solids content, total acidity and pH value) and bioactive values (ascorbic acid, total anthocyanins, total phenols, and non-flavonoids content) of wild grown raspberry (Rubus idaeus) and blackberry (Rubus discolor) genotypes harvested from native populations in Croatia. The average total acidity ranged from 0.93 to 1.72% in R. discolor and 1.57 to 1.91% in R. idaeus. Ascorbic acid was found between 22.34 mg and 45.00 mg 100 g⁻¹ in R. idaeus, while it was between 30.64 mg and 33.09 mg 100 g⁻¹ in R. discolor genotypes. A great variability in total anthocyanins was detected in Croatian wild blackberry and raspberry genotypes, ranging from 2,226 to 2,367 mg kg⁻¹ for blackberries and 279 to 582 mg kg⁻¹ for raspberries, indicating wild blackberries are particularly rich in anthocyanins. On the basis of these results, it can be concluded that investigated wild growing fruit species have a great potential in nutritive research, as well as in biodiversity research. It is necessary to carry out further investigation and evaluation of wild growing fruit species to utilize them in the most appropriate way, as well as conservation of interesting accessions in the gene banks.

3D printing technology (3DP) as additive manufacturing is an innovative design technology that can meet the individual nutritional and sensory needs of consumers. Therefore, the aim of this work was to apply 3DP in the production of a strawberry-based functional product with the addition of two hydrocolloids (corn and wheat starch) in three proportions (10, 15 and 20%) and to investigate the influence of 3DP process parameters on physico-chemical and textural properties, as well as the bioactive and antioxidant potential and microbiological stability, with(out) the addition of natural antimicrobial agents. Starch type had a significant effect on all tested bioactive compounds, as well as on starch content, except for total phenolic and hydroxycinnamic acid contents. Considering the content of bioactive compounds and antioxidant capacity, program 2 proved to be more suitable than program 1. All samples exhibited good textural properties, a high degree of stability and minimal geometric deviations. Regarding microbiological safety, no pathogenic bacteria were found in the 3DP samples during storage. The 3DP sample with added citral at a concentration of 75 mg L⁻¹ showed the best microbiological quality. Ultimately, 3DP can be successfully used for the production of new strawberry-based functional products.

The strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo L.) is a Mediterranean plant known for the traditional use of its fruits and leaves due to their health benefits. Thus, it has been used for years in folk medicine to relieve various health conditions such as urological and kidney problems, dermatological, cardiovascular and gastrointestinal diseases. The fruits are traditionally used for making jams, jellies, and strong alcoholic beverages, while the leaves are mostly used for preparing tea. Since the leaves were more researched, previous results indicated that they have important biological effects, so further research should focus on the fruits. Due to its chemical composition, rich polyphenolic profile and the biological potential derived from it, the plant has great prospects for the production of functional foods and nutraceuticals. However, the plant’s potential is underutilized in terms of processing. Therefore, this review summarizes the properties and the potential of the fruits and leaves of A. unedo and their possible benefits for processing with respect to agricultural, nutritive, biological and economic values.

Open Access Agricultural Journals published by Institute of Agricultural Economics and Information