High-Throughput Screening of Sensory and Nutritional Characteristics for Cultivar Selection in Commercial Hydroponic Greenhouse Crop Production

Summary

Hydroponic greenhouse-grown and store-bought cultivars of tomato (cherry and beefsteak), cucumbers, bibb lettuce, and arugula were investigated to see if they could be distinguished based on sensory qualities and phytonutrient composition. Only the more dominant sensory criteria were sufficiently robust to distinguish between cultivars and could form the core of a consolidated number of criteria in a more discriminating sensory evaluation test. Strong determinants for cultivar selection within each crop included the following: mineral analysis (particularly Cu, Fe, K, Mg, and P); total carotenoids (particularlyβ-carotene, lycopene, and lutein); total carbohydrate (except in arugula); organic acids; total phenolics and total anthocyanins (except in cucumber). Hydroponically grown and store-