RESUMO
Organic agriculture is considered one of the elements of sustainable food production and consumption, mainly due to its limited impact on the natural environment. At the same time, the quality features of organically produced foods, especially sensory attributes and health promoting values, are important factors determining consumers' interest, and therefore play a key role in the organic sector's development. The aim of this study was to investigate the sensory characteristics and concentrations of sugars and selected health-promoting bioactive compounds of organic courgette compared to conventionally grown courgette. In addition, untargeted metabolomic analysis of the courgette fruits was performed. The results of this study did not show a significant effect of the horticultural system (organic vs. conventional) on the concentrations of vitamin C, carotenoids, and chlorophylls in the courgette fruits. However, the fruits from the organic systems were significantly richer in sugars when compared to the conventionally cultivated ones (p = 0.038). Moreover, the organic fruits fertilized with manure contained significantly higher amounts of polyphenols, including gallic acid (p = 0.016), chlorogenic acid (p = 0.012), ferulic acid (p = 0.019), and quercetin-3-O-rutinoside (p = 0.020) compared to the conventional fruits. The untargeted analysis detected features significantly differentiating courgette fruits depending on the cultivar and horticultural system. Some significant differences in sensory values were also identified between fruits representing the two cultivars and coming from the horticultural systems compared in the study. Conventional courgettes were characterized by the most intensive peel color and aquosity, but at the same time were the least hard and firm compared to the fruits from the two organic systems. There was also a trend towards higher overall quality of the organically grown fruits. The presented study shows that the organic and conventional courgette fruits differ in a number of quality features which can influence consumers' health and purchasing choices.
RESUMO
Courgette is considered as a low-calorie vegetable with health-promoting properties. However, scientific publications focused on the profile and content of bioactive compounds in courgette, as well as the potential fruit quality modulating factors, are rare. Due to the high adaptability of courgette to weather and agronomic conditions, it is produced on a global scale. The aim of this study was to analyse the impact of organic versus conventional agronomic practices on the concentration of selected antioxidants in courgette fruits. Fruits of two courgette varieties (Astra Polka and Nimba) produced in an organic and conventional system were tested by high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to determine the content of polyphenols (flavonoids and phenolic acids), carotenoids, chlorophylls, and vitamin C. Organic courgette fruits were characterised by their significantly higher content of phenolic acids and flavonoids when compared to the conventionally grown fruit. The organic cultivation might be a good method to increase concentration of bioactive compounds with antioxidant properties in courgette fruits. Nevertheless, the identified trends should be further confirmed, with attention paid to other courgette varieties, as well as to the potential interactions between the plant genotype, agronomic system and the location-specific growing conditions.
