Large variations in antioxidant capacity and contents of Hungarian sour and sweet cherry cultivars

Currently a fruit grower faces severe challenges in providing high yields of good quality fruits. Quality is determined by size, colouration, flavour and other traditional attributes. However, in addition to phytosanitarian demands (fruits must be free from diseases or pests) more and more requirements are also emerging to be covered by fruits. One of these aspects gaining importance is the health-promoting power of fruits consumed either in fresh or processed. This demand also highlights the need for thorough surveys for health-related contents in fruits including commercial cultivars as well as specific landraces or locally grown genotypes. The consumption of health-promoting foods becomes more important and fashionable with many consumers willing to pay more for a healthy product. The oxygen in the cells of the human body naturally produces free radicals. Some adverse effects (for example smoking, UV light, air pollution, inappropriate nutrition etc.) increase the intraand intercellular quantity of active oxygen species. The free radicals may initiate a chain reaction and they are capable to deteriorate cells.Antioxidants can prevent or slow the oxidative damage. Health problems such as heart disease, inflammation, macular degeneration, diabetes, cancer etc. are all induced by oxidative damage.Antioxidants may also enhance immune defence and therefore lower the risk of cancer and infection. Sweet and sour cherry production has long tradition in Hungary. Cultivars show great variability and it can be considered as a native species around the Black Sea and Europe. Hungarian sour cherry production ranks 8th among all countries in terms of the production quantity. Hungary produces 4% of the total world supply (Faostat, 2007) but Hungarian cultivars are also grown in other Central European countries or even in the USA. Hungarian sweet cherry production has much restricted significance in world production compared to sour cherries. It ranks 36th among all countries (Faostat, 2007). Most commercial cultivars are those introduced from other countries with only a limited number of Hungarian cultivars in production.