Rapid Sensory Profiling Methods for Research and Industrial Applications

Abstract

Developing new products that satisfy consumer needs is a challenge for the food industry, wherein brands must strike a balance between meeting customer expectations and outperforming competitors in the marketplace. The sensory properties of foods significantly influence consumer preferences. Their evaluation using human senses as measurement instruments, aka sensory analysis, bridges food science and technology research with new product development and marketing activities. In this context, the sensory analyst toolkit is expected to provide an accurate portrayal of consumers’ expectations and judgements of the sensory properties of food products while meeting the requirements and constraints of industrial research and innovation activities. As these requirements and constraints impose the need for more insightful, flexible, faster and cheaper sensory evaluation methods, rapid profiling techniques continue to emerge, replacing conventional descriptive analysis in both academic and industry applications. Their advantage lies in the ability to generate sensory maps from semi-trained panellists and untrained consumers’ product evaluations that closely mimic those delivered by conventional descriptive techniques using trained panellist assessments. This chapter offers a comparative overview of some of the most relevant techniques – flash profile, check-all-that-apply (CATA), Napping®-Ultra flash profiling and open/free comments – and illustrates their use with own research reflecting recent advances.