An Investigation Into The Fruit Firmness Properties of Some Progeny and Cultivars of Red Raspberry (Rubus Idaeus)

Raspberries (Rubus ideaus L.) are popular and a major UK soft fruit crop. Several efforts have been geared towards developing an improved cultivar that will have a longer shelf-life. A 1 to 2 days improvement in fruit shelf-life would increase the value of harvested fruit and reduce waste. This research work investigated the firmness characteristics of 22 progeny (clones) derived from a Glen Moy x Latham mapping population by recording the various hardness values at 4 0 C over a 7 day storage period. A QTS-Texture Analyser was used to measure hardness values and the results were analyzed using Restricted Maximum Likelihood (REML) analysis. The parameters measured were: hardness, hardness1_workdone, final load, and sample length (diameter). Overall, there were significant differences (p<0.001) in the total hardness measurements between progeny. This research shows that some red raspberry clones from Glen Moy x Latham mapping population can stay wholesome after 7 days of storage at 4 0 C. This is a good development for red raspberry processors and the supermarkets.