ASHS 2025 Conference

Rabbiteye blueberries (RE; V. virgatum A.) are perceived to have poor fruit quality compared to southern highbush (SHB; V. corymbosum L). Comprehensive quality assessments of RE genotypes during storage are scarce. To understand fruit quality differences firmness, general composition and phytonutrient contents in 5 RE (‘Brightwell’, ‘Vernon’, ‘MS1110R’, ‘T-3072’ and ‘T-3075’) and 1 SHB (‘Legacy’) genotype were evaluated. Fruit harvested from E.V. Smith Research Center (Tallassee, AL) were stored at 4°C at 85% relative humidity. Measurements were taken on days 0 and 14 (0d and 14d) in storage. Firmness was measured using a FruitFirm1000 (g/mm). Soluble solids content (SSC, °Brix), titratable acidity (Tacid) and pH were assayed. Total anthocyanins (mg/g), phenolics (mg/100g), and DPPH antioxidant capacity (mM/100g) were quantitated via UV-VIS spectrophotometry. Days in storage*genotype were significant in firmness, Tacid, pH, anthocyanins, phenolics, and antioxidants. ‘T-3072’ had the highest firmness (0d; 289.97 g/mm) compared to ‘MS1110R’ (0d; 130.61 g/mm). ‘Vernon’ (0d; 0.66) had the highest Tacid while ‘Legacy’ (0d; 0.34) was lowest. Conversely, pH was highest in ‘Legacy’ (0d; 3.68) and lowest in ‘T-3075’ (0d; 3.12). Anthocyanins and antioxidants were highest in ‘MS1110R’ on 0d (28.62 mg/g and 29.59 mM/100g) and phenolics were highest in ‘Brightwell’ after 2 weeks of storage (426.97 mg/100g). Genotype differences indicated SSC was highest in ‘Brightwell’ (16.19) compared to ‘Legacy’ (12.03). Principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) were performed on 0d and 14d among the genotypes to better determine how composition changed during storage. PCA indicated ‘Legacy’ clearly separated from the RE genotypes and was negatively correlated to firmness and all composition and nutritional traits. HCA determined three clusters of interest with similar genotype characteristics from 0d to 14d. In cluster I, ‘T-3072’ and ‘T-3075’ maintained moderate to enhanced firmness. ‘Legacy’ had consistently suppressed SSC and Tacid (Cluster II). While ‘Brightwell’ and ‘MS1110R’ had enhanced anthocyanins, phenolics and antioxidants (Cluster III). Reduced SSC and Tacid are associated with lower perceived sweetness and sourness. RE genotypes demonstrated higher SSC and enhanced nutritional content, making them appealing for health-conscious consumers. Sensory analysis on 4 RE and 2 SHB genotypes will be conducted utilizing a trained panel to determine differences in sweetness, sourness, texture and aroma. We expect analyzing sensory data with physicochemical assays will further provide insightful information helpful in developing acceptable RE genotypes with preferred flavor and texture.

WORKSHOP OBJECTIVES
The primary goal of this workshop is to bring together a diverse network of professionals from academia, industry, extension services, and government agencies who are working to enhance the performance, sustainability, and resilience of Latin American horticultural supply chains to the U.S.
Participants will:

• Share knowledge on how to improve quality, minimize postharvest losses, and meet regulatory and market demands.
• Highlight opportunities for supporting Latin American growers, exporters, and logistics providers.
• Explore cross-cutting themes including climate resilience, labor, sustainability, and technology adoption.
• Foster collaboration and lay the groundwork for future events focused on Latin America and horticulture.

Speakers:

• Jorge Vanegas – jvenegas@pairwise.com
• Juan Rodriguez – jc@foginfo.org

WORKSHOP FORMAT
I. Expert Presentations (35 minutes total)
 Three panelists (15 minutes each) will present on the following themes:

• Production and Sustainability: Emerging challenges and innovations in Latin American fruit, vegetable, and ornamental production systems.
• Postharvest and Quality Management: Best practices to preserve quality and extend shelf life during export, focusing on compliance with U.S. standards.
• Trade and Market Access: Navigating U.S. regulations, phytosanitary requirements, and certification systems, with insights into logistics and cold chain management.

II. Experience Sharing from the Field (15 minutes)
 A moderated session where 5–6 attendees will briefly (2–3 minutes each) share their field experiences working in or with Latin American horticultural systems. This segment will offer valuable context and grassroots perspectives to enrich the subsequent discussions.
III. Breakout Group Discussions (25 minutes)
 Participants will join focused roundtables based on key crops or sectors (e.g., tropical fruits, temperate fruits, vegetables, ornamentals). Each group will explore:

• Specific supply chain challenges
• Opportunities for innovation and collaboration
• Regional production and trade differences

IV. Group Reporting & Strategy Sharing (15 minutes)
 Groups will reconvene to summarize key insights and report out barriers and proposed solutions (e.g., cold chain infrastructure gaps, pest and disease pressures, labor constraints, traceability needs). A shared whiteboard will capture these points to inform follow-up actions.

V. Building Toward Future Collaboration (15 minutes)
 The workshop will conclude with an open discussion to identify opportunities for future collaboration. This may include organizing a follow-up workshop or proposing a broader symposium or conference focused on Latin American Horticulture—bringing together academic, industry, and government stakeholders to build long-term partnerships and shared research agendas.

Climate variability causes unpredictable seasonal weather events during the fruit-growing period. This affects fruit set and quality by affecting ripening and deterioration rates postharvest. The goal of this research was to study how different weather conditions affected fruit quality at harvest and their storage potential. Four sweet cherry cultivars (Rainier, Bing, Skeena, Sweetheart) grown commercially in Central WA during 2021-2024 were harvested at two different times and stored in air (0-1 oC) for 30 days. Maturity indices (weight, color, firmness, soluble solids), stem condition, and defects were evaluated every two weeks plus 2 days at 5-6 oC simulating refrigerated shelf-life. Overall, the seasonal weather had a significant impact on fruit quality at harvest and postharvest. Fruit firmness varied among seasons in all cultivars and increased over time in storage in most cases. Skin color was only affected by harvest time. No clear trends across cultivars were observed with soluble solids content or fruit weight. The stem condition declined with time postharvest, but the rate was season- and cultivar-dependent. Positive correlations between bioclimatic indexes and the rate of deterioration (including pitting and pebbling) were found that need further investigation.

The preservation of bioactive compounds in fruit juices is essential for maintaining their nutritional value and consumer appeal. This study explores the potential of Continuous Flow High-Pressure Homogenization (CFHPH) as a promising alternative to traditional thermal processing methods, such as High-Temperature Short-Time (HTST), in fruit juice production. CFHPH has demonstrated effectiveness in preserving bioactive compounds, including ascorbic acid, carotenoids, anthocyanins, and phenolic acids, while significantly reducing the thermal degradation of heat-sensitive compounds associated with HTST. In this research, we compared CFHPH to HTST in juices from horticultural crops, including watermelon, blueberry, and grapefruit. CFHPH treatment at 300 MPa and an inlet temperature of 4 °C maintained higher levels of carotenoids, anthocyanins, and ascorbic acid during storage, while also reducing the activity of oxidative enzymes such as polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and peroxidase (POD) across all tested fruits. In contrast, HTST processing resulted in a considerable loss of bioactive compounds due to oxidation and thermal degradation. CFHPH not only preserved essential nutrients but also extended shelf life under market-simulated storage conditions by minimizing oxidative damage and reducing particulate sedimentation, making it an ideal solution for the growing demand for minimally processed, nutrient-rich fruit juices. This technology offers significant potential for the horticulture and food industries, ensuring fresh, nutritious, and appealing juices for health-conscious consumers.

Blueberry (Vaccinium spp.) texture is a key trait in breeding programs primarily due to its influence on consumer acceptance, machine harvestability, transportability, shelf-life, and overall quality. Variations in firmness have been extensively studied on southern highbush (SHB; Vaccinium corymbosum L.), with little reported on rabbiteye (RE; Vaccinium virgatum) genotypes. Various texture instruments, including FruitFirm1000, FirmTech II, and TA.XT2 Plus texture analyzers, are used, but not all assess multiple mechanical parameters on blueberry fruit. Initial firmness evaluations on 17 RE and SHB genotypes using a FruitFirm1000 identified genotype-specific variations over six weeks of storage (4 °C, 85% relative humidity). At harvest (day 0), ‘Titan’ (RE) had the highest firmness (287 g.mm-1), while ‘MS1110R’ (RE) had the lowest (152 g.mm-1). After 4 weeks in storage (day 28), RE genotypes of ‘Titan’, ‘Vernon’, ‘T-3075’, and SHB ‘Legacy’ maintained high firmness (˃200 g.mm-1). While ‘Alapaha’ (RE), ‘New Hanover’(SHB), and ‘MS1110R’ (RE) did not retain firmness (˂150 g.mm-1). Texture is a complex and multi-component trait; a single firmness measurement cannot comprehensively capture all attributes influencing blueberry texture variations. To further understand blueberry mechanical parameters, our current study utilizes a TA.XT2Plus texture analyzer equipped with 2 mm needle and 2 mm flat probe. The needle probe will measure force parameters across different blueberry tissues: epidermis (Fep), hypoderm (Fh), parenchyma (Fp), and inner pulp (Finner). The 2 mm flat probe will measure mechanical parameters derived from force-distance curves, which relates to skin elasticity, internal firmness, graininess/grittiness, skin strength, and stiffness (Young’s modulus). Ten blueberry genotypes (7 RE and 3 SHB) representing distinct crisp/high, medium, and low firmness levels will be harvested and stored at 4 °C and 85% relative humidity. Texture measurements will be taken at two postharvest timepoints, day 0 and 14. By integrating advanced texture analysis (TA.XT2Plus) compared to FruitFirm1000, a comprehensive understanding of firmness variability and texture changes in RE compared to SHB blueberries will be obtained. The advanced textural assessment will enable data-driven insights to inform breeding selections for improved texture in fresh-market cultivars.

Firmness is an important quality attribute for assessing fruit maturity, postharvest management, and consumer acceptance. Texture profile analyser and penetrometers are two destructive and time-consuming traditional methods for measuring firmness. Hyperspectral imaging presents a potential non-destructive alternative by acquiring the spectral and spatial data of fruits. The ability of hyperspectral imaging to predict firmness of Haskap berries (Lonicera caerulea) at various ripening stages is investigated in this study. Hyperspectral images of the Aurora cultivar were collected at 3 harvesting stages (early, mid, late), 3 growing positions (high, middle, low), and different sunlight exposure conditions (partial shade, full sun). The spectral data was collected for a selected region of interest. The reflectance spectra (396.92-1033.95 nm) were analysed, and different models were developed using neural network (R2= 0.44; RMSE= 0.35), general regression (R2= 0.41; RMSE= 0.36), partial least squares (R2= 0.45; RMSE= 0.35) and bootstrap (R2= 0.63; RMSE= 0.28) predictive modelling methods. The preliminary results of the research study findings imply that hyperspectral imaging is a viable tool for promptly estimating firmness and classifying the ripeness stage of haskap berries. By integrating hyperspectral imaging and data-driven approaches, growers can significantly enhance fruit quality and optimize decision-making processes, enabling better pre- and postharvest management.

Although sunlight is crucial for optimal apple production, excessive sun exposure can negatively impact appearance and alter internal quality of the fruit. Sun stress-related disorders are the primary cause of economic losses in major apple-growing regions. Granny Smith, the third most produced variety in Washington State, is notably prone to sunscald, a postharvest disorder manifested by the superficial darkening of the peel, rendering the fruit unmarketable. Lower chlorophyll and higher carotenoid concentration in Granny Smith peel is associated with increased sunlight exposure and a higher likelihood of sunscald development. In this research, the chlorophyll-to-carotenoid ratio measured non-destructively with a hyperspectral imager at harvest was used to categorize apples according to sunscald susceptibility: high, moderate, low, and very low. The quality parameters for apples in each sunscald risk category were evaluated to determine whether pre-storage sorting based on sun exposure could enhance the consistency of cold chain quality and performance. It was hypothesized that relative sun exposure has a significant influence on apple quality parameters and ripening patterns during storage. Apples were harvested from three orchards over three consecutive years and subsequently stored in air for six months before quality analyses. During the final year, additional assessments were conducted at four and five months of storage to monitor the progression of ripening and sunscald incidence. A multi-year analysis including firmness, soluble solids, titratable acidity, greenness (Iad), peel lightness (L*), and the chromatic shift from green to yellow (a/b) resulted in similar classifications among categories. However, changes in internal quality parameters attributable to relative sun exposure were evident when analyzing fruit from a single location and season. Overall, apples classified as having high and moderate sunscald risk exhibited elevated soluble solids and reduced titratable acidity compared to those in lower sunscald risk categories. Additionally, these quality parameters were more variable for fruit with high and moderate sunscald risk. The ripening pattern was similar for fruit in the low and very low categories, with a more homogeneous data distribution. The incidence of sunscald increased over time and with increased sun exposure, resulting in 11% fruit loss after 6 months of storage. Although the primary benefit of the sunscald susceptibility index is to enhance commercial viability by enabling apples in high-risk categories to be sold before sunscald symptoms render them unmarketable, sorting and grouping fruit based on relative sun exposure rendering a more homogenous storage outcome, potentially reducing economic losses for growers and packers.