Re-evaluation of traditional Mediterranean foods. The local landraces of 'Cipolla di Giarratana' (Allium cepa L.) and long-storage tomato(Lycopersicon esculentum L.): quality traits and polyphenol content

• Published in: Journal of the science of food and agriculture Vol. 93; no. 14; pp. 3512 - 3519
• Main Authors: Siracusa, Laura, Avola, Giovanni, Patanè, Cristina, Riggi, Ezio, Ruberto, Giuseppe
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chichester, UK John Wiley & Sons, Ltd 01.11.2013; John Wiley and Sons, Limited
• Subjects: Allium cepa; analysis; anatomy & histology; Assessments; Bulbs; Chemical Phenomena; chemistry; Culture; Diet, Mediterranean; Edible; Food; Food safety; Foods; genetics; Genotype; Genotype & phenotype; landraces; long-storage tomato; Lycopersicon esculentum - chemistry; Lycopersicon esculentum - genetics; Morphology; Nutritive Value; onion; Onions; Onions - chemistry; Onions - genetics; Perceptions; phenolic content; Plant Roots; Plant Roots - anatomy & histology; Plant Roots - chemistry; Polyphenols; Polyphenols - analysis; Product safety; Production methods; quality traits; Sicily; Sicily (Italy); Solanum lycopersicum; Solanum lycopersicum var. lycopersicum; Species Specificity; Tomatoes; traditional crops; traditional foods; Sicily (Italy); traditional crops; long-storage tomato; onion; quality traits; phenolic content
• ISSN: 0022-5142; 1097-0010; 1097-0010
• DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.6199

BACKGROUND The heightened consumer awareness for food safety is reflected in the demand for products with well‐defined individual characteristics due to specific production methods, composition and origin. In this context, of pivotal importance is the re‐evaluation of folk/traditional foods by properly characterizing them in terms of peculiarity and nutritional value. The subjects of this study are two typical Mediterranean edible products. The main morphological, biometrical and productive traits and polyphenol contents of three onion genotypes (‘Cipolla di Giarratana’, ‘Iblea’ and ‘Tonda Musona’) and three long‐storage tomato landraces (‘Montallegro’, ‘Filicudi’ and ‘Principe Borghese’) were investigated. RESULTS Sicilian onion landraces were characterized by large bulbs, with ‘Cipolla di Giarratana’ showing the highest bulb weight (605 g), yield (151 t ha−1) and total polyphenol content (123.5 mg kg−1). Landraces of long‐storage tomato were characterized by low productivity (up to 20 t ha−1), but more than 70% of the total production was obtained with the first harvest, allowing harvest costs to be reduced. High contents of polyphenols were found, probably related to the typical small fruit size and thick skin characterizing these landraces. CONCLUSION The present study overviews some of the most important traits that could support traditional landrace characterization and their nutritional value assessment. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry