Sensory and physico-chemical quality attributes of jujube fruits as affected by crop load

- Crop load did not affect weight and size of jujube fruits.
- Aldehydes predominated in the volatile composition of jujube fruits.
- Reduced crop load increased the sweet and fruity intensities of jujube fruits.
- Reduced crop load increased sensory quality of jujube fruit.

No information exists on the overall quality attributes of jujube fruits as influenced by crop load; besides, there are no studies describing the sensory profile of this fruit. For this reason, the aim of this study was to analyze the influence of the reduction of crop load (T1: one third of the crop load was removed; T2: two thirds of the crop load were removed) on the quality of jujube fruits. The quality parameters studied were: yield, fruit morphology, color, instrumental texture, minerals, volatile composition, and sensory profile. Results have demonstrated that reduction of crop load increased: (i) the intensity of characteristic sensory attributes of jujube fruits, such as sweetness, sourness, jujube-like, or fruity notes, and (ii) the contents of some volatile compounds, such as trans-2-hexenal, benzaldehyde, and 2-octenal, which are characterized by fruity notes. However, a reduction of crop load did not significantly affect any of the morphological parameters under study. Thus, the reduction of crop load increased the overall quality (intensity of key sensory attributes, and content of key volatile compounds) of jujube fruits.