Quality of prunes obtained from new plum cultivars created in Čačak

Abstract

The paper presents the most significant characteristics of fresh fruits present in new plum cultivars created at the Fruit Research Institute in Čačak, intended for prunes production (Nada, Krina, Mildora and Čačanska rodna as the standard cultivar). Drying was performed using fruits of optimal ripeness level, with the same drying method applied to fruits of all of the respective cultivars, using the experimental dryer at 90 °C air temperature. The tested parameters of prunes quality included the sugar content and the sugar-acid ratio, as well as the organoleptic characteristics (appearance, flavour, aroma, consistency). Contents of respective phenolic compounds in fruits were also determined, including rutin, neochlorogenic acid, chlorogenic acid, caffeic acid, protocatechuic acid, gallic acid and cyanidin. All of the examined cultivars are conductive to prune production, despite the differences in chemical composition, organoleptic evaluation and contents of phenolic compounds. The colour of the prunes ranged from amber (cv Mildora) to black (cv Nada), which is interesting from the aspect of different consumers’ tastes. The organoleptic evaluation of the prunes ranged from 17.02 (cv Krina) to 18.88 (cv Čačanska rodna), which is primarily determined by the different values of the sugar-acid ratio and different phenolics contents.