Effect of variety and agro-ecology on physio-chemical and organoleptic quality of avocado fruit grown in Ethiopia

Avocado is the most important fruit with high nutritional value in the tropics and subtropics. It is a widely grown cash crop in Ethiopia’s south, southwest, and east. However, the fruit quality of different varieties has not been studied at various locations. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of variety and agroecology on the physio-chemical and sensory qualities of avocado fruit. This study used six varieties of avocados (Hass, Fuerte, Nabal, Bacon, Ettinger, and Pinkerton) and three avocado growing locations. The highest maximum values of total soluble solids, pH, and titratable acidity were found in varieties of Bacon at Wondo Genet (10.97%), Nabal at Debre Zeit (7.4), and Pinkerton at Wondo Genet (8.36%). All the study locations showed significant differences in total soluble solids, pH, and titratable acidity values (P > 0.05). Instrumental color measurement revealed statistical variations in the values of L*, a*, b*, chroma (C*), and hue angle among varieties and variety*location interaction (ho). At Wondo Genet, Nabal (81.38%), Pinkerton (5.76%), Pinkerton (5.73%), and Hass (62.23%) had the highest moisture, ash, protein, and fat content, respectively. The grand mean values of color, appearance, aroma, taste, and overall acceptability for six different avocado varieties at three different locations were 3.72, 3.65, 3.72, 3.75, and 3.68, respectively. The results revealed that physio-chemical and sensory parameters vary with variety and agroecology. Therefore, it is recommended that avocados be grown with proper sensory and physicochemical properties included into the production system for both domestic and industry for various purposes.