Terpene volatiles mediates the chemical basis of blueberry aroma and consumer acceptability

Among the main features treasured by blueberry consumers, flavor is the most important. Human perception of food flavors can primarily be divided into two main sensory inputs, taste and aroma. Through retronasal olfaction, a group of metabolites called volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from the fruit are able to produce the sensation of aroma, creating the myriad of flavors experienced during our life. In blueberry, breeders have noticed some genotypes with unique floral and sweet flavor notes that, ultimately, enhance human aroma perception. Despite the importance, both the understanding of which chemicals are mediating this variation across phenotypes and the potential impact on consumer acceptability remains largely unknown. In this study we dissected the main components underlying blueberry aroma and associated it with consumer predilections by paring metabolomics with sensory analysis. Our contribution in this study is four-fold: (i) first, based on a representative blueberry germplasm cultivated at the University of Florida, we differentiated genotypes with floral and sweet aromatic notes and confirmed that such unique characteristics are preferred by consumers; (ii) at the chemical level, we showed that a group of eight terpene volatiles constitute the primary metabolic group associated with aroma sensation; (iii) we demonstrated that aromatic genotypes can be classified using information from a group of a few key volatiles; and finally, (iv) we combined pedigree and metabolomic information in a single predictive framework and showed the importance of metabolomic data for flavor-assisted selection. For the blueberry community, our findings open new venues to explore flavor. Broadly, we present an emerging view about flavor and provide a detailed blueprint of how this target could be addressed in fruits and vegetables.