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Consumption of edamame (vegetable soybeans) has increased significantly in the U.S. over the last 20 years. Although market demand has been increasing, most edamame is still imported from Asian countries. A team of multistate plant-breeding programs in the mid-Atlantic and Southeast U.S. has focused on developing new breeding lines that grow well in the U.S. and deliver what domestic growers, processors and consumers need and expect from their edamame. In our study, sensory evaluation was used to identify edamame genotypes and sensory attributes preferred by consumers to support breeding selection criteria. In the first year (reported as our "screening study"), 20 edamame genotypes were grown in three locations: Newport, AR, and Blacksburg and Painter, VA. In the second year (reported as our "validation study"), 10 edamame genotypes selected after our screening study were grown in Blacksburg and Painter, VA, Portageville, MO, and Stoneville, MS. In both years of research, untrained participants (adults; vegetable consumers not allergic to soy; N >= 50) used a traditional 9-point acceptability (hedonic) scale (1 = "dislike extremely"; 9 = "like extremely") to evaluate overall-liking, aroma, appearance, taste, and texture, and a 5-point scale (1 = "not sweet," 5 = "extremely sweet") to evaluate sweetness intensity. Next, participants used a check-all-that-apply (CATA) list of selected sensory terms to describe the sensory characteristics of each edamame sample. Overall acceptability of edamame genotypes was significantly different among all genotypes (p < 0.05). Samples described as "bitter," "sour" (flavor) or "starchy" (texture) were associated with lower acceptability scores while "salty" and "sweet" (flavor) were correlated with higher acceptability. Sensory data from the screening study were used to select the best genotypes by use of a defined decision process based on the consumer data. The validation study tested the selection decisions and further supported the genotype choices. Sensory evaluation is a powerful tool to direct breeders to improve market acceptability and develop new edamame genotypes. Both screening and validation studies illustrate the significant role of consumer sensory data in support of genotypes targeted for domestic (U.S.) production. ; USDA-NIFAUnited States Department of Agriculture (USDA) [2018-51181-28384, 1016465]; Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station; ARSUnited States Department of Agriculture (USDA)USDA Agricultural Research Service [6066-21220-012-00D] ; This work was funded by USDA-NIFA (Grant No. 2018-51181-28384; Accession No. 1016465), and, in part, by the Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station. This project was partially supported by the ARS Project Number 6066-21220-012-00D. Mention of trade names or commercial products in this publication is solely for the purpose of providing specific information and does not imply recommendation or endorsement by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer. ; Public domain authored by a U.S. government employee

Commercially viable cultivars adapted to U.S. production regions that meet consumer acceptance criteria are desperately needed by the growing domestic edamame industry. Here, we report the development and release of 'VT Sweet' (Reg. no. CV-542, PI 699062), the first vegetable soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] cultivar released by Virginia Tech. VT Sweet is a late maturity group (MG) V cultivar (relative maturity 5.6, 129 d to harvest) with determinate growth habit, purple flowers, gray pubescence, tan pod wall, and yellow hila. VT Sweet has superior characteristics for edamame such as large pod size (13.9 g/10 pods; 40.4 mm long, 11.4 mm wide, and 7.6 mm thick) and low one-bean pod proportion (15%), as well as low pod pubescence density (359 hairs/2.4 cm(2)). VT Sweet also showed high overall consumer acceptability (6.0 +/- 1.7; 9 = like extremely) and favorable tolerance to native pests. When compared with the commercial edamame check 'UA Kirksey', VT Sweet showed 102% of the check yield, a higher average field emergence rate (74.9 vs. 68.1%), and comparable consumer acceptability (6.05 vs. 6.10). Therefore, VT Sweet is an ideal cultivar for growers who are interested in commercial edamame production in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States. ; USDA-NIFAUnited States Department of Agriculture (USDA) [2018-51181-28384, 237 436 1016465] ; Published version ; We thank USDA-NIFA for the financial support (Grant No. 2018-51181-28384; Accession No. 237 436 1016465) that led to the development of VT Sweet. The authors also thank Sam Chang, Lila Chung, Raymond Chung, and Shannon Ellis for their advice and Muliang Peng, Lin Barrack, Tom Pridgen, Michelle Lee, XingboWu, William Singer, and Joseph Oakes for their technical support in cultivar development. ; Public domain authored by a U.S. government employee