Abstract
The main objective of the EUBerry project is to provide the necessary knowledge and tools to facilitate development of high quality, consumer-desirable fresh berry fruits of high nutritional quality optimal for human health at a competitive cost. The further objective is the development and validation of a set of tools to improve competitiveness of European berry production and consumer accessibility to berry fruits. The EUBerry platform will be developed and validated by using strawberry, raspberry, and blueberry as model crop species. Specific critical points related to improvement of berry fruit quality and reduction of production costs will also be considered for currants and blackberries. The EUBerry project will identify germplasm of the main berry fruit genera appropriate for sustainable production throughout Europe, expand high-quality production systems to improve availability of high-quality fresh berries for consumers, develop new methods to control and maintain fruit nutritional quality, validate the impact of new technologies for farmers and consumers, and disseminate and communicate the results to stakeholders and regulatory agencies.
INTRODUCTION
The high importance of berry cultivation in Europe is demonstrated by the promotion of the European research network on this subject [European Union (EU) Project COST Action 863–Euroberry, www.euroberry.it], which involved 31 signatory countries that ended in August 2010. Interest in berry research, production, and marketing also has a very large international dimension, from the non-EU countries of the east-Balkan area to New Zealand and Chile, now two of the most important countries exporting berries to the EU. From the activities carried out from this large COST863 Action emerged the necessity to promote the development of a European berry production system supporting the following concepts:
| A. | Growers throughout Europe need cultivars and growing systems that secure high quality fruit grown under environmentally safe and economically viable conditions. Currently, market globalization means that growers need to attain and maintain high standardization of production systems while continuing to source and maintain a high level of genetic resources. | ||||
| B. | High quality fruits are required both for fresh consumption and processing. Fruit should have a high sensory and nutritional value and be marketed as a safe product with a minimum of pesticide applications. | ||||
| C. | The importance of the levels and benefits of antioxidants and other bioactive compounds found in these berries should be understood. Accurate and substantiated information derived either from validated systems, such as appropriate models (in vitro) or interventions (in vivo), must be provided to consumers so that the health benefits are well understood to allow informed choices. | ||||
| D. | Berries are popular with consumers and the demand within Europe is high. The threat of excessive imports from non-European countries with low labor costs must be counteracted by developing modern and profitable production systems. The improvement of berry cultivation efficiency and increased commercial value of the fruit will help in overcoming the labor problems. These types of cultivation are considered as key components of developing new multi-functional agriculture systems. The reliability of the results will be secured by the capacity of the consortium identified for this proposal, including a unique integration of the major EU institutions operating in berry research and several key small medium enterprises (SMEs) with high impact on berry production and markets in the EU (). TABLE 1 List of Partners Involved in the EUBerry Project | ||||
Importance of Berry Production and Market in the EU
Berries play an important role in the human diet due to their chemical composition being naturally enriched with many nutritive and bioactive compounds. In the last decade, and as a consequence of market demand, the high level of berry production in European countries has been noted by official organizations, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (last FAO official data from 2007), and more recently in the framework of COST Action 863 (2008 and partially 2009). In 2007, small fruit production in Europe (tonnage and acreage provided by FAOSTAT (www.faostat.fao.org) consisted of strawberry (1,159,819 tons and 122,844 ha), raspberry (169,007 tons and 42,391 ha), currant (195,290 tons and 60,775 ha), and blueberry (28,363 tons and 14,150 ha). The survey of production statistics collected at the same time as part of the Euroberry (COST 863) project indicated strawberry at 1,199,500 tons and 120,850 ha, raspberry at 203,300 tons and 41,290 ha, currant at 272,170 tons and 60,426 ha, and blueberry at 17,550 tons and 3,930 ha. The differences between the FAO and our survey results for raspberry and currant occurred because more Ribes species were considered for currants and gooseberries than the FAO survey and lack of complete information about blueberry cultivation in the first COST questionnaire.
Since the information provided by the 2007 FAOSTAT report was comparable to that of a COST Action 863 survey, the COST data generated for 2008 and 2009 could be used for reports and projection of berry production in Europe. Accordingly, the results of the COST 863 survey showed that recent annual berry production in European countries ranged from 1,347,500 tons for strawberry, and about 274,100 tons for currants, raspberry, and blackberry. Production of blueberry and other small fruit species was 79,290 tons. The production acreage was estimated >125,000 ha for strawberry, 60,000 ha for raspberries and currants, and 15,000 ha for blueberry and other berries.
Enhanced Varietal Performance through Breeding
This will be achieved by taking into account the available genetic resources, through specific links with 2 final stage EU DG AGRI GEN RES projects (GENEBERRY and RIBESCO), as well as the integration of traditional and molecular breeding techniques and functional studies. These activities will focus on improving of berry fruit taste, nutraceutical, and nutritional quality, while addressing plant adaptation to different climatic conditions and cultivation systems. By incorporating information from the AGRI GENERES projects, specific research activities will be addressed to complete phenotyping of genotypes exhibiting higher fruit quality and plant adaptation to season extension and climate change. Existing national breeding programs and molecular studies will be utilized with the aim of integrating modern genomic tools for improved breeding efficiency, specifically for genes controlling plant adaptation and fresh fruit quality. Specific and well-addressed functional studies will be also included to validate, at least in strawberry, the role of genes controlling plant adaptation and fresh fruit quality.
Improve Cultivation Techniques and Develop Adaptation Strategies to Changing Climatic Conditions and Minimize Negative Impacts on the Environment
This aim will be achieved by developing and applying new cultivation techniques able to enhance production efficiency and quality of the different cultivation systems adopted for berries (open field and protected cultivation) and the promotion of season extension. This aspect will be addressed to guarantee high quality out-of-season strawberry, raspberry, and blueberry production in southern, central, and northern Europe (), and will, therefore, include research into plant quality (type of plants and conditions of production), plantation date, type of tunnels, etc. Studies will be performed on factors influencing adaptation to climate conditions and changes. These will include experimental trials addressing cultivation-related changes in plant physiology, and plant adaptation to climate change-related biotic and abiotic stresses, and also the maintenance of high quality in strawberry, raspberry, blueberry, and black currant. The reduction of environmental impacts will be addressed by comparing high and low input systems (reduced water, nutrients, pesticides, etc.), including research on pest management by biocontrol and other sustainable methods.
FIGURE 1 Geographical distribution of the partners in the three main EU climatic areas (color figure available online).
Establish Fruit Quality for the Fresh Market by Improving Taste, Nutraceutical (Bioactive), Nutritional Quality, and Post-Harvest Stability
For fresh berry fruit, the factors determining internal quality and stability now is a key priority with respect to improving consumer acceptance and health and market value. The improvement of internal and external fruit quality will be achieved by focusing on methods to determine fruit quality, as extended to aroma, texture, taste, and sensorial analyses per se in combination with nutritional quality and specific bioactivity (nutraceutical value) for all berries, as well as identification and monitoring of fruit using high throughput (chemo) phenotyping techniques. Post-harvest treatments (hypobaric treatments, temperature, CA conditions, ozone, UV-C and combinations, packaging materials) will be tested to improve shelf-life of strawberry, raspberry, and blueberry leading to optimum stability of fresh fruit quality, and nutraceutical and nutritional value. The effect of fresh fruit on consumer health will be addressed using validated, appropriate, and translatable in vitro cell model systems known to represent and reflect the conditions in vivo.
Increase Economic Competitiveness of Berry Production and Develop a Science-Based Marketing Strategy
The increased economic competitiveness of new plant material and cultivation techniques developed by the project will be evaluated and the data will be used for the development of a science-based marketing strategy to promote the health benefits of berries and an increase in their consumption. This research will be carried out in close collaboration with SMEs, who will produce and validate economic and marketing data.
Organize the Scientific, Technical, and Public Dissemination of Project Results and Conclusions
A dissemination plan will be developed by considering a proper and logical integration of the scientific, technical, and public dissemination of project results and conclusions. The scientific dissemination plan (papers, talks, posters, flyers, etc.) will be utilized to create a utilitarian scientific knowledge base that will then be exploited to update the actors in the EU berry production industry and to develop new marketing and public dissemination activities by using traditional and advanced media tools (webpage, video, podcast, etc.). Furthermore, specific activities will be organized to improve the knowledge of experts (specific workshop and training activities, including a school), and operators (conferences, videos, and publications) throughout different levels of the berry production chain.
CONCLUSION
The output from the EUBerry project will directly impact a significant number of key strategic areas, including improved sustainable production, enhanced quality of life, important socio-economic factors, the knowledge-based economy, increased competitiveness and prosperity, and international developments as well as the advancement of fundamental science and the exploitation of knowledge. The project is, therefore, entirely consistent with the overall objectives and deliverables of the European Community's 7th Framework Programme on Knowledge Based Bio-Economy (KBBE), to exploit new and emerging research opportunities addressing environmental and economical challenges; the growing demand for safer, healthier, and higher quality food; and for sustainable use of renewable bio-resources. Internet-accessible resources related to EUBerry are provided below:
EU COST863 (www.euberry.it)
GEN RES project 036: European Small Berries Genetic Resources (www.bordeaux.inra.fr/genberry)
GEN RES 071: Ribesco (www.mtt.fi/Ribesco)
EU FP7 Program Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, and Biotechnology (KBBE) (http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/kbbe/home_en.html)