Quality of Fruits and Vegetables
Fruits and vegetables products are the enigma of foods in modern society. Readily available locally in the fresh state on a seasonal basis, the same fresh quality is desired on a year round basis. Purchased and served on a basis of visual appeal, they are criticized for lacked of adequate flavor. Praised as a cornerstone of a nutritious diet, they are condemned as unsafe carriers of pesticide residues. Highly sought for specific attributes, they are susceptible to wide variation in composition as raw agriculture commodities.
Quality has been defined as “the composite of those characteristics that differentiate individual units of a product, and have significance in determining the degree of acceptability by the buyer”. External quality characteristics, those that can be perceived by the senses of sight and touch without ingesting the product, are important in product differentiation, particularly in purchase decision and food preparation.
Internal quality characteristics, those that can perceived by the sense of taste, smell, and touch (mouthfeel), combine with the visual appearance in determine acceptability and presumably
decision to repurchase that product. Other less-tangible characteristics, such as nutritional value, wholesomeness, and safety of a product, which required sophisticated equipment to measure are not readily determined by most consumers, but the perceptions of these attributes by the consumer affect both differentiation and acceptability of the product.
Quality of Fruits and Vegetables
