The Scoop on SCOBY (Symbiotic Culture of Bacteria and Yeast): Exploring Consumer Behaviours towards a Novel Ice Cream.

With the growing demand for sustainable practises, the food industry is increasingly adopting circular economy approaches. One example is recycling the symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeast (SCOBY) used in kombucha fermentation to create value-added products. However, consumer acceptance of such novel products remains unclear. To address this, the present study examined consumer attitudes towards ice cream made with SCOBY as an ingredient and how this affected their intention to consume it. Drawing on the theory of planned behaviour (TPB) and additional constructs such as emotions and food neophobia, an online survey was conducted with New Zealand consumers (N = 170). Results showed that the TPB constructs significantly predicted the intention to consume SCOBY ice cream. Moreover, by adding emotions to the constructs, the model's explanatory power was enhanced. Attitudes, subjective norms, and emotions were the main predictors of intention, which in turn was found to be the main predictor of behaviour. Participants' beliefs about the safety and taste of SCOBY ice cream were significantly correlated with their intention and behaviour, as were the opinions of nutritionists/dietitians, friends, and family. The model accounted for 21.7% of the variance in behaviour and 57.4% of the variance in intention. These findings can be used to plan marketing strategies related to waste-to-value-added products such as SCOBY ice cream.

Exploring the textural dynamics of dairy and plant-based yoghurts: A comprehensive study.

The mouthfeel and texture of dairy and non-dairy yoghurts play a critical role in food acceptance and liking. The present study aimed to understand the oral perception of commercially available dairy and non-dairy yoghurts. Four dairy and four non-dairy yoghurts with different levels of protein and fat were analyzed to understand the impact of particle size, textural properties and frictional coefficient on the dynamic sensory mouthfeel characteristics measured by the temporal dominance of sensations (TDS) method. Differences in friction coefficients of dairy and non-dairy yoghurts were observed. The friction factor was lower for high-fat dairy yoghurts than for non-dairy yoghurts. The particle size d90 in yoghurts was positively related to graininess perception (r=0.81) and negatively associated with mouthfeel liking (r=-0.87) and overall liking (r=-0.80). For the TDS results, "creaminess" and "thickness" were significantly dominant for dairy yoghurts, while "melty" and "easy to dissolve" were dominant attributes for non-dairy yoghurts. Creaminess perception improves the mouthfeel liking (r=0.72) and overall liking (r=0.59) of yoghurts and is the driver of liking. The findings of this study help understand the intrinsic mouthfeel properties of commercial dairy and non-dairy yoghurts, which will provide valuable insight to product developers during the new product formulation.

Understanding consumer liking of beef patties with different firmness among younger and older adults using FaceReader™ and biometrics.

Sensorial perceptions change as people age and biometrics analysis can be used to explore the unconscious consumer responses. Investigation was conducted of effects of consumer age (younger, 22-52 years; older, 60-76 years) on facial expression response (FER) during consumption of beef patties with varying firmness (soft, medium, hard) and taste (±plum sauce). Video images were collected and FERs analysed using FaceReader™. Younger people exhibited higher intensity for happy/sad/scared and lower intensity for neutral/disgusted, relative to older people. Interactions between age and texture/sauce showed little FER variation in older people, whereas younger people showed considerable FER variation. Younger people, but not older people, had lowest intensity of happy FER and highest intensity of angry FER for the hard patty. Sauce addition resulted in higher intensity of happy/contempt in younger consumers, but not older consumers. FER collected using FaceReader™ was successfully used to differentiate between the unconscious responses of younger and older consumers.

Combining hierarchical clustering and preference mapping differentiates consumer preference for dry aged mutton.

Dry ageing of mutton may enhance mutton's consumer appeal; however, consumer acceptance of mutton is heterogeneous. To identify which consumers prefer dry aged mutton, dry (DA) and wet aged mutton (WA) loin and topside were rated by consumers (n = 540) for tenderness, juiciness, liking of flavour and overall liking on a 0-100 scale. Two predictive liking models were developed, utilising either consumer clusters (identified by agglomerative hierarchical clustering) which related to mutton liking and ageing method preference, or demographic factors. The cluster based model had the highest explanatory power. Cluster 1 (n = 219) preferred DA (p < 0.001), rating it 5.9 points higher than WA, cluster 2 (n = 235) had no ageing method preference (p > 0.05), and cluster 3 (n = 79) preferred WA (p < 0.001), rating WA liking 8.3 points higher than DA. Cluster characterisation identified some differences between clusters that may relate to consumer ethnicity and familiarity with mutton.

High consumer acceptance of mutton and the influence of ageing method on eating quality.

To compare the eating quality (EQ) of wet (WA) and dry aged (DA) mutton longissimus thoracis et lumborum (LTL) and semimembranosus (SM), bone-in leg and loin primals from 81 merino cull ewes were WA or DA for 14, 28, 42 or 56 days. Untrained consumers (n = 540) assessed the excised LTL and SM for EQ (tenderness, juiciness, liking of flavour and overall liking, 0-100), quality grade and respective willingness to pay (WTP). LTL scored higher than SM for EQ, P < 0.001 for all consumer sores. Mean LTL EQ scores were > 70 and mean SM EQ scores >54. Ageing method had no significant effect on LTL or SM EQ (P > 0.05 for all consumer scores). Ageing beyond 14 days improved SM and LTL tenderness. Consumers most often graded LTL and SM quality grades as "better than everyday" and "good everyday" respectively; corresponding WTP was 26.90 $AUD/kg and 18.80 $AUD/kg. Extended ageing periods improved mutton tenderness.

Self-Reported Emotions and Facial Expressions on Consumer Acceptability: A Study Using Energy Drinks.

Emotional responses elicited by foods are of great interest for new product developers and marketing professionals, as consumer acceptance proved to be linked to the emotions generated by the product in the consumers. An emotional measurement is generally considered an appropriate tool to differentiate between the products of similar nutritional value, flavour, liking and packaging. Novel methods used to measure emotions include self-reporting verbal and visual measurements, and facial expression techniques. This study aimed to evaluate the explicit and implicit emotional response elicited during the tasting of two different brands (A and B) of energy drinks. The explicit response of consumers was assessed using liking (nine-point hedonic scale), and emotions (EsSense Profile®-Check-All-That-Apply questionnaire), and implicit emotional responses were evaluated by studying facial expressions using the Affectiva Affdex® software. The familiarity of the product and purchase intent were also assessed during the study. The hedonic rating shows a significant difference in liking between the two brands of energy drink during the tasting session. For the explicit emotional responses, participants elicited more positive emotions than the negative emotions for both energy drinks. However, participants expressed "happy", "active" and "eager" emotions more frequently for energy drink A. On the other hand, the implicit emotional responses through facial expressions indicated a high level of involvement of the participants with energy drink B as compared to energy drink A. The study showed that overall liking and the explicit and implicit emotional measurements are weakly to moderately correlated.

Effects of packaging design on sensory liking and willingness to purchase: A study using novel chocolate packaging.

Packaging is the first impression consumers have of food products which determines likelihood of purchasing. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of chocolate packaging design on sensory liking and willingness to purchase (WTP) of consumers (n = 75) under three conditions:(1) blind [product], (2) packaging, and (3) informed [product and packaging]. The same chocolate tasted in (1) was wrapped in six different packaging concepts (bold, fun, every day, special, healthy, premium) developed based on TNS NeedScope™ model for (3). There were significant differences in liking towards taste based on packaging. Liking scores for (3) reduced when expectations created by packaging were not met. Regression analysis explained, taste had strongest association (r = 0.73) towards WTP. Cochran's Q and McNemar tests showed significant differences in frequencies of emotion-based terms between packaging and informed conditions. These findings can be used in product design to evaluate product attributes by enhancing emotional attachment towards chocolate.

Cross-cultural effects of food product familiarity on sensory acceptability and non-invasive physiological responses of consumers.

This research evaluated the effects of product familiarity on the sensory acceptability and physiological responses of consumers toward different food stimuli using two populations (Asian vs. Western). Two studies were conducted: (1) an online questionnaire and (2) a tasting session. For (1), n = 102 (60% Asians and 40% Westerners) evaluated 31 food items visually for familiarity and liking whereas for (2), participants (n = 60; 48% Asians and 52% Westerners) evaluated 10 different foods (tortoise jelly, chili slices, beef jerky, dried tofu, Vegemite®, durian cake, octopus chips, chocolate, corn chips, and wasabi coated peas) by tasting for familiarity and liking (visual/aroma/taste/texture/overall). A novel Android® app (Bio-sensory App) was used to capture sensory and non-invasive physiological responses (temperature, heart rate and facial expressions) of consumers. In (1), Asian and Western participants differed in their familiarity scores, visual liking ratings, and the selection of emotion terms for the stimuli. In (2), cultural differences affected familiarity and the liking scores of appearance, aroma, taste and texture of the products. While food stimuli marginally affected the physiological responses of consumers for both cultures, Asian participants elicited higher temperature values compared to those of Westerners. Both studies (1 and 2) showed that familiarity of food products was positively associated to sensory liking for both cultural groups. These findings are useful to understand consumers acceptability based on both sensory and physiological responses.

Development of emotion lexicons to describe chocolate using the Check-All-That-Apply (CATA) methodology across Asian and Western groups.

Emotion-based terms selected by Asians and Westerners were analyzed to develop lexicons associated with chocolate consumption. Hence, an online-based questionnaire (Study 1: N = 206; 51% Asians, 49% Westerners) and a chocolate (milk and dark) tasting session (Study 2: N = 75; 52% Asians, 48% westerners) were conducted to assess emotion terms related to chocolate consumption using Check-All-That-Apply methodology. Emotional satisfaction was the main reason for chocolate consumption. Furthermore, selection of emotional terms was different between cultures and gender. For both studies (1 and 2), flavor of chocolate was the most important factor that determined purchase intention. For Study 2, milk and dark chocolate evoked different emotion terms for participants. The lexicon developed for milk chocolate had similar emotion terms compared to the Study 1 lexicon (online). Developing an emotion lexicon using an online survey could provide a reduced lexicon compared to lexicons generated during the tasting session and can be used as a fast-screening method to develop simplified emotion lexicons due to its similarity to the tasting lexicon. Newly developed lexicons from this study can be applied to sensory consumer tests of chocolate.

Novel Modelling Approaches to Characterize and Quantify Carryover Effects on Sensory Acceptability.

Sensory biases caused by the residual sensations of previously served samples are known as carryover effects (COE). Contrast and convergence effects are the two possible outcomes of carryover. COE can lead to misinterpretations of acceptability, due to the presence of intrinsic psychological/physiological biases. COE on sensory acceptability (hedonic liking) were characterized and quantified using mixed and nonlinear models. N = 540 subjects evaluated grape juice samples of different acceptability qualities (A = good, B = medium, C = poor) for the liking of color (C), taste (T), and overall (OL). Three models were used to quantify COE: (1) COE as an interaction effect; (2) COE as a residual effect; (3) COE proportional to the treatment effect. For (1), COE was stronger for C than T and OL, although COE was minimal. For (2), C showed higher estimates (-0.15 to +0.10) of COE than did T and OL (-0.09 to +0.07). COE mainly took the form of convergence. For (3), the absolute proportionality parameter estimate (λ) was higher for C than for T and OL (-0.155 vs. -0.004 to -0.039), which represented -15.46% of its direct treatment effect. Model (3) showed a significant COE for C. COE cannot be ignored as they may lead to the misinterpretation of sensory acceptability results.

Novel techniques to understand consumer responses towards food products: A review with a focus on meat.

Consumer evaluation has been used extensively over the past decades to evaluate acceptability and quality of food products. New methods have been developed to overcome some biases of traditional techniques. Testing with meat is challenging due to the high variability of the meat samples. This review outlines (a) the traditional consumer-based techniques for assessing food, and available methods to link consumer responses to sensory properties (b) qualitative measurements, (c) past and current methods for evaluating meat sensory characteristics and the development of the Meat Standard Australia (MSA) protocol, and (d) psychological and physiological factors affecting consumers. Conclusions from this review are: (1) Traditional consumer testing provides important information regarding acceptability but may miss important unconscious responses of consumers (2) Qualitative methods can obtain more holistic responses from consumers, (3) The Meat Standard Australia (MSA) protocol delivers consistent scores of meat's juiciness/tenderness/flavour and overall acceptability from consumers, and (4) Physiological responses may help to understand the unbiased emotions of consumers.

Increasing Oil Concentration Affects Consumer Perception and Physical Properties of Mayonnaise-type Spreads Containing KCl.

Reducing sodium intakes remains a global challenge for the food industry. KCl is a potential salt substitute but imparts bitterness when used at high concentrations. Little is known about how oil concentrations (OC) affect consumers' perception of saltiness and bitterness in emulsion products such as mayonnaise containing KCl. We evaluated consumers' perception and physical properties of mayonnaise-type spreads at various oil and tastant (NaCl or KCl) concentrations. Consumers (N = 306) evaluated saltiness, bitterness, overall taste liking (OTL) and purchase intent (PI). Viscosity, pH, water activity, and consistency/texture were also measured. Oil and tastant (NaCl or KCl) concentrations had significant effects on saltiness, viscosity, and pH. As OC increased, saltiness intensity slightly decreased for spreads. Increasing oil concentration increased viscosity. Generally, spreads containing KCl had higher bitterness and pH than spreads containing NaCl. All spreads containing KCl were penalized for being "too bitter." PI was affected by OTL for all spreads but OC was also a significant factor in the purchase decision of spreads containing NaCl. This study demonstrated that increasing OC affected consumers' taste perception (saltiness and bitterness) and spreads' physical properties including pH and viscosity.

Cross-Cultural Consumer Acceptability and Purchase Intent of Forage-Finished Rib-Eye Steaks.

UNLABELLED: Rib-eye steaks, from 3 forage-finished systems (S1, S2, and S3) and 1 commercial steak (C), either cooked by 1-sided-grilling or 2-sided-grilling, were evaluated for sensory acceptability [overall appearance (ORA) and overall appearance of fat (OAF) for raw steaks; overall appearance (OCA), overall beef aroma (OBA), overall beef flavor (OBF), juiciness, tenderness and overall liking (OL) for cooked steaks] and purchase intent by Hispanic, Asian and U.S. consumers. They also indicated preferred degree of doneness and cooking methods. Cross-cultural differences in preferences and consumer acceptability of rib-eye steaks were observed. Grilling was the most preferred cooking method. Hispanics and Asians preferred medium and/or medium well, while U.S. consumers preferred medium and/or medium rare. For cooked steaks, the population effect was significant for all sensory attributes; Asians generally scored lower than did Hispanics and U.S. consumers. C and S3 generally had higher scores for all sensory attributes across 3 populations. Purchase intent for all forage-finished steaks was higher for Hispanics and U.S. consumers compared to Asians (50.0% to 77.8% compared with 43.2% to 65.9%). Attributes influencing purchase intent of forage-finished steaks differed among populations: tenderness (odds ratio = 1.4) for Hispanics, OCA (odds ratio = 1.5) for Asians, and OBF (odds ratio = 1.3) for U.S. consumers. Overall, this study demonstrated that the type of forage-finished system and ethnic differences influenced sensory acceptability and purchase intent of forage-finished rib-eye steaks. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: Demand for forage-finished beef has increased worldwide due to its potential health benefits. Little is known regarding the cross-cultural effects on the consumer acceptance of forage-finished beef. We evaluated sensory acceptance and purchase intent of raw and cooked forage-finished rib-eye steaks using Hispanic, Asian, and U.S. (White and African American) populations. This study demonstrated that consumer acceptability and purchase intent of forage-finished rib-eye steaks differed among Hispanic, Asian, and U.S. populations. This information can be used to guide development and marketing strategies for beef products.

Psychophysical Effects of Increasing Oil Concentrations on Saltiness and Bitterness Perception of Oil-in-Water Emulsions.

Limited research has been done to investigate saltiness and bitterness perceptions of NaCl, KCl, and caffeine in emulsion systems. Saltiness and bitterness intensities of emulsions prepared with different concentrations of oil [0% (that is, solution), 20%, 40%, canola oil] and different concentrations of 3 tastants (NaCl [0.5% to 1.0%], KCl [0.5% to 1.5%], and caffeine [0.05 to 0.15%]) were measured using the Spectrum™ descriptive method (N = 16) and the Electronic-tongue (E-tongue). Linear regression and the Stevens' power law were used to model the taste intensities against the tastant concentrations. From the descriptive data, saltiness intensities in emulsions were higher than solutions, demonstrating a saltiness-enhancing effect imparted by oil. Bitterness intensities in emulsions were lower compared to those of solutions for caffeine, but they were similar for KCl. This demonstrated that oil suppressed bitterness for caffeine. E-tongue saltiness measurements were corresponding to those of the descriptive data; however, E-tongue bitterness intensities of KCl showed an opposite pattern.

Oil-in-Water Emulsion Exhibits Bitterness-Suppressing Effects in a Sensory Threshold Study.

Little is known about how emulsion characteristics affect saltiness/bitterness perception. Sensory detection and recognition thresholds of NaCl, caffeine, and KCl in aqueous solution compared with oil-in-water emulsion systems were evaluated. For emulsions, NaCl, KCl, or caffeine were dissolved in water + emulsifier and mixed with canola oil (20% by weight). Two emulsions were prepared: emulsion 1 (viscosity = 257 cP) and emulsion 2 (viscosity = 59 cP). The forced-choice ascending concentration series method of limits (ASTM E-679-04) was used to determine detection and/or recognition thresholds at 25 °C. Group best estimate threshold (GBET) geometric means were expressed as g/100 mL. Comparing NaCl with KCl, there were no significant differences in detection GBET values for all systems (0.0197 - 0.0354). For saltiness recognition thresholds, KCl GBET values were higher compared with NaCl GBET (0.0822 - 0.1070 compared with 0.0471 - 0.0501). For NaCl and KCl, emulsion 1 and/or emulsion 2 did not significantly affect the saltiness recognition threshold compared with that of the aqueous solution. However, the bitterness recognition thresholds of caffeine and KCl in solution were significantly lower than in the emulsions (0.0242 - 0.0586 compared with 0.0754 - 0.1025). Gender generally had a marginal effect on threshold values. This study showed that, compared with the aqueous solutions, emulsions did not significantly affect the saltiness recognition threshold of NaCl and KCl, but exhibited bitterness-suppressing effects on KCl and/or caffeine.