Potential of fourier transformed near-infrared (FT-NIR) spectroscopy for rapid analysis of elderberry (Sambucus nigra L.) fruits

Fruit samples were analysed to investigate the suitability of Fourier transform near infrared spectroscopy (FT-NIR) for the rapid discrimination of elderberry genotypes. Parallel analysis with classical chemical techniques and spectral measurements was performed on 11 cultivars originating from various European countries. The titratable acidity (TA) and soluble solids content (SSC) of the fruit, and the geographical origin and breeding method of the cultivar were used as reference data. Three spectrum transformation methods (standard normal variation, multiplicative scatter correction and first derivative) were applied in the calibration process. The statistical analysis and comparison of the samples was carried out using principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA). In all cases the analysis demonstrated a correlation between the spectra and both the chemical traits (TA and SSC) of the fruit and the other reference data, indicating that pattern recognition was not a chance occurrence. This work provides the first evidence that the NIR technique can be successfully applied to distinguish between elderberry genotypes on the basis of fruit quality, thus opening up new possibilities in breeding cultivars for food industry purposes.