Conventional vs. Organic: Evaluation of Nutritional, Functional and Sensory Quality of Citrus limon

Abstract

Organic farming is growing rapidly worldwide since it is perceived as more respectful of the environment than conventional farming. In this sense, organic agriculture is highly appreciated by consumers since consumers around the world believe that organic food has a higher content of beneficial compounds for health and consider it of higher quality. For that reason, the objective of this research was to evaluate the nutritional, sensorial, and functional quality of the ‘Fino 49’ lemon grafted on Citrus macrophylla in conventional and organic cultivation. Fatty acids, amino acids, total phenol, and polyphenols were quantified, antioxidant activity was measured, and sensory descriptive analysis was performed. Conventional farming led to an increase in amino acid content (641 mg L−1) and an increase in polyunsaturated fatty acids (254 mg 100 g−1) and monounsaturated fatty acids (37.61 mg 100 g−1). On the other hand, organically produced lemon fruits had better sensory profile (highlighting overall aroma (6.5), lemon odor (6.8), sourness (5.8), floral (0.6), and fresh lemon flavor (9.8)), and lower thrombogenicity index (0.15). The type of cultivation (organic and conventional) had no influence on the antioxidant activity (~1.60, ~3.08, and ~4.16 mmol Trolox L−1 for ABTS+, DPPH•, and FRAP, respectively) and polyphenols content (85.51 and 86.69 conventional and organic, respectively). However, to establish the advantages and disadvantages of different types of cultivation on lemon quality more studies are needed.