Taste Characteristics of Apple Concerning the Variation of Food Texture "Softness" Caused by Elapsed Time of Storage

Abstract

　This study investigated fruit texture and taste in Shinano Gold apples from Nagano Prefecture that had been stored for five months. Measurements included fruit firmness, sensory softness, and mechanical indentation. Softness measurements non-destructively evaluated the texture of fruit flesh from outside its skin. Mechanical indentation tests depended on the reaction force from inside the fruit following Newton's third law. Indentation tests also provided information about internal fruit quality. Measurements of flesh firmness and sensory softness decreased with storage time and significantly correlated with each other (r＝0.916, p＜0.05). Results suggested that mechanical indentation tests are useful for assessing the taste of apples.