Dietary Elements and Quality Parameters of 34 Old and Eight Commercial Apple Cultivars Grown at the same Site in South Tyrol, Italy

Apple is one of the most widely produced and consumed fruits worldwide and hence, complete data of apple composition are important for human diet. Currently, a limited number of cultivars dominate the market, while many others, with a potentially higher nutritional value, are neglected by consumers. The present work reports the content of the dietary elements potassium (K), phosphorus (P), calcium (Ca) and magnesium (Mg) as well as the content of the macroelement nitrogen (N) of 34 old cultivars grown at the same site under identical conditions in South Tyrol, Italy. Their elemental composition was assessed along with quality parameters such as fruit weight, firmness, and soluble solid content and total acidity at harvest and post storage. For selected cultivars the measurements were performed over two or even three different harvest years. Comparison with eight commercial cultivars chosen to represent the fruit currently dominating the market was performed. Besides offering a valuable insight in the variation of dietary elements among old and commercial apple cultivars in up to three harvest years, this study, that complements current nutritional databases, recommends several old cultivars with high content of dietary elements for further study and eventual re-introduction in niche markets.