A hybrid CNN model for multi-class freshness and disease detection in local spinach varieties

Ensuring the post-harvest quality and health of leafy vegetables is critical for minimizing economic loss, enhancing food security, and promoting sustainable agricultural practices. Spinach, a highly nutritious yet perishable crop, is particularly susceptible to rapid freshness degradation and foliar diseases. While computer vision and deep learning have shown promise for automated quality assessment, existing models often lack the robustness to handle the dual-task classification of both freshness and disease states across diverse local spinach varieties. To bridge this gap, this paper introduces a novel hybrid Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) architecture specifically designed for the multi-class detection of freshness and visual disease symptoms in local spinach leaves. The proposed model synergistically integrates a powerful feature extraction backbone with a tailored attention and fusion mechanism, enhancing its ability to capture discriminative spatial and textural features critical for fine-grained classification. It was trained and validated on a curated dataset comprising high-resolution images of three prominent local varieties (Malabar, Water, and Red spinach) in both fresh and non-fresh conditions. The proposed hybrid model achieved a classification accuracy of 98.36%, significantly outperforming benchmark state-of-the-art models including DenseNet121, ResNet50, and EfficientNetB0. Furthermore, explainable AI (XAI) techniques visually validated the model’s decision-making process, confirming its focus on biologically relevant leaf regions. The results demonstrate that the proposed hybrid framework offers a highly accurate, reliable, and interpretable tool for non-destructive, real-time quality monitoring. This work provides a significant contribution towards intelligent post-harvest management systems, capable of reducing waste and supporting the value chain for local spinach cultivation.