Thats entirely possible too, less light, less nutrients, less care, I prefer whiter strawberries since they are sweeter than tart myself. But it could just as easily be nurture vs yield as well.

[–] The_v@lemmy.world 1 points 7 months ago

It's likely the reverse. The bottom one will have a shorter growing cycle.

The top one is selected for firmness and shipping. Delayed ripening is usually linked to these traits in climacteric fruits.

The bottom one is selected for internal color and yield. They can't be shipped very far though.

[–] The_v@lemmy.world 1 points 7 months ago (1 children)

In this instance it's likely a different variety. I would guess it's a processing variety versus a shipping variety.

Most strawberries for long distance shipping are bred for a lower degree of softening during the ripening process. This is done by selective breeding for a lower expression of expansin activity. This allows for them to have a shelf life of 3 weeks.

Processing varities (preserves, freezing, etc) have a very sort shelf life. Often only 3-4 days. They are selected for the deep red color throughout the fruit as well as yield. This deep red color looks better in the finished products.

[–] Kongar@lemmy.dbzer0.com 3 points 7 months ago* (last edited 7 months ago)

I grew up on a farm and strawberries were one of the big crops. You might be right but I think the biggest thing is that they are simply picked green. Not 100% green, but as soon as they show a little red, they are picked. They last MUCH longer this way, but at the cost of flavor. There are different varieties, but those two berries look the same (most of the ones you see are the jewel variety)