Options for the generation of seedless cherry, the ultimate snacking product

MAIN CONCLUSION: This manuscript identifies cherry orthologues of genes implicated in the development of pericarpic fruit and pinpoints potential options and restrictions in the use of these targets for commercial exploitation of parthenocarpic cherry fruit. ABSTRACT: Cherry fruit contain a large stone and seed, making processing of the fruit laborious and consumption by the consumer challenging, inconvenient to eat ‘on the move’ and potentially dangerous for children. Availability of fruit lacking the stone and seed would be potentially transformative for the cherry industry, since such fruit would be easier to process and would increase consumer demand because of the potential reduction in costs. This review will explore the background of seedless fruit, in the context of the ambition to produce the first seedless cherry, carry out an in-depth analysis of the current literature around parthenocarpy in fruit, and discuss the available technology and potential for producing seedless cherry fruit as an ‘ultimate snacking product’ for the twenty-first century.