Preliminary results about Romanian consumers preferences on jujube fruits

First jujube trees (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.) have been introduced to Romanian lands probably by the Greek and Byzantine colonists nearly 2,000 years ago.
Local biotypes of sour jujube (Ziziphus acidojujuba Cheng et Liu) have been founded recently in Jurilovca on Razelm Lake shore in Mahmudia, Tulcea and a genotype of Z. jujuba in Ostrov on Danube shore.
After 1997, around 20 jujube varieties and local populations were introduced from China and started to be studied in the Romanian conditions at the Faculty of Horticulture experimental fields in București.
In order to study the consumer preferences regarding the jujube fruits, several sensorial analysis sessions were organized, both for fresh and dried fruits.
Fruit size, color, taste, flavour and overall impression were analyzed by consumers of different ages and genders.
In parallel, some fruit physical and chemical analysis were made to characterize the fruit samples.
The results showed that the consumers preferences are influenced by age and gender and the jujube fruits are highly appreciated, both fresh and dried.
Further consumer tests are needed to better understand their preferences and the typology of new jujube genotypes, adapted to the local growing conditions that will be extended in production.

XXX International Horticultural Congress IHC2018: International Symposium on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, Culinary Herbs and Edible Fungi, IV International Jujube Symposium and VI International Symposium on Saffron Biology and Technology

F. Stănică, D.E. Dicianu, A.C. Butcaru, L.M. Iliescu

Ziziphus jujuba, sensorial analysis, age, gender

https://doi.org/10.17660/ActaHortic.2020.1287.37