Quality is a complex trait, including size, overall flavour (taste and texture) and visual attractiveness (colour, shape). Quality of the product at harvest depends on each step of the production chain, from variety development by breeders and choice by producers, to the conditions of production and distribution. Its management requires the integration of knowledge at the different steps. Ecophysiological models represent a helpful tool for this integration, but very few mechanistic models of quality traits have been developed. In this work, we describe some process based models developed on peach and tomato fruits, which describe main processes governing final fruit size and composition in primary compounds: cell division and expansion, accumulation of carbon and water, sugar and acid metabolism. Perspectives of integration of such models to account for interactions among biological processes are discussed.
Keywords: modelling, fruit size, sugar, acid, quality parameters