CONSUMER PREFERENCES TOWARDS PINEAPPLE CULTIVARS IN MALAYSIA

Pineapple was among the priority crops to be developed under the Third National Agricultural Policy (1998-2010), which emphasized both fresh produce and processed products. Research undertaken by MARDI had produced a number of pineapple cultivars for both purposes. This study was conducted to evaluate consumer preferences towards some of the cultivars that are in the market. The results of this study would provide important input in future breeding work for cultivar development. A survey was carried out in the Klang Valley involving 234 respondents. Four pineapple samples were provided for the respondents. These samples consisted of ‘Maspine’, ‘Josapine’, ‘Morris’ and ‘MD-2’ and the respondents in evaluating the samples, gave scores from 1 (least preferred) to 5 (most preferred) on specific attributes of the samples. Generally, the respondents preferred ‘MD-2’ followed by ‘Josapine’, ‘Morris’ and ‘Maspine’, with mean scores of 4.38, 4.10, 2.67 and 2.63, respectively. Higher consumer preferences towards ‘MD-2’ were due to its aroma (4.38), sweetness (4.26) and colour (4.25) while ‘Josapine’ scored less in all the attributes that were listed, with aroma (4.14), sweetness (4.04) and colour (3.95). Even though ‘Maspine’ and ‘Morris’ were less preferred by consumers, both of these cultivars had higher scores in “crunchiness”. Between ‘Maspine’ and ‘Morris’, consumers scored ‘Maspine’ higher on colour and juiciness attributes while ‘Morris’ scored higher on the “crunchiness” attribute. Based on the findings of this study, attributes that contributed to higher overall scores were aroma, sweetness and the colour of ‘MD-2’ was evidently preferred. Researchers should produce improved pineapple cultivars with ‘MD-2’ as a benchmark in the development of future cultivars for fresh consumption.