Studying the influence of package shape and colour on consumer expectations of milk desserts using word association and conjoint analysis

Food packaging plays a major role in attracting consumer attention and generating sensory and hedonic expectations; which could affect their product perception and purchase decisions. In the present study word association and conjoint analysis were used to study the influence of package shape and colour on consumer expectations of milk desserts. Six images of milk dessert packages with different colour and shape were presented to 105 consumers, who were asked to complete a word association task and to score their expected liking and willingness to purchase the desserts. Both package shape and colour affected consumers expected liking scores and their sensory expectations regarding the desserts. Consumers associations were mainly related to sensory characteristics. Both methodologies provided an interesting insight on the consumer’s expectations generated by the packages and could be useful in order to design packages which create appropriate expectations regarding the product.     

The influence of recent tasting experience on expected liking for foods

Expected liking is an important determinant of food choice and there is some suggestion that liking expectations are stable over time. Here we examine the impact that a recent ‘disappointing’ hedonic experience has on expected liking. In Study 1, we examine if a disappointing experience results in changes to expected liking one day after tasting and one week after tasting. In Study 2, we examine whether past frequency of eating a food determines whether a disappointing hedonic experience results in changes to expected liking. In Study 1, expected liking for a food was reduced 1 day after a disappointing experience, but not 1 week afterwards. In Study 2, past frequency of eating moderated whether expected liking for a food was reduced 1 week after a disappointing experience: expected liking of a infrequently eaten food was reduced, but not expected liking of a frequently eaten food. Liking expectations can be influenced by disconfirmatory hedonic experiences with a food product, but these effects are dependent upon the recency of the experience and the past frequency with which the food is eaten.     

The use of an ethological approach to evaluate consumers’ appreciation of luxury facial skincare and discriminate between products: A preliminary study

The hedonic dimension of products is a central challenge for cosmetic companies. It is widely measured by liking ratings of the products by consumers, but although this method does help to understand consumer choices, it also carries several experimental biases and provides no information on consumers’ feelings. Here we tested the relevance of combining consumers’ liking ratings with a detailed behavioral approach involving analysis of activities, postures, gazes, and head and body movements of consumers during skincare application to discriminate two products. The sensory characteristics of the two products were also described by a panel of experts.Results showed that behavioral analysis was able to discriminate the two products in terms of satisfaction whereas liking ratings assessment failed to distinguish them. Behavioral analysis also provided relevant complementary information on consumers’ feelings during and after product application, such as interest, detachment or physical comfort. When linked to the sensorial evaluation, the study of behavioral reactions helped understand how the two products’ respective sensory characteristics were perceived by consumers. This preliminary study brings new insight with promising perspectives for research on cosmetics and consumer products in general.     

Provision of visually appetising and high-energy maize soup as an in-between meal for older consumers

The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of enriched energy density and visual topping on maize soup’s intake, overall liking, taste liking, food-evoked emotion and perceived familiarity among older home-dwelling people. This study consisted of two tests: in the first test, the most appetising soup was chosen from six high-energy soups topped with different condiments by testing participants’ rankings based only on appearance; while in the second test, participants tasted the most visually appealing maize soup (high-energy maize soup topped with parsley), as well as topping-free high-energy maize soup and low-energy maize soup. Enriched energy density significantly increased the energy intake of maize soup, and visual topping significantly increased both the weighed intake and energy intake of high-energy maize soup. A combined sensory dimension modification of maize soup by enriching energy density and adding visual topping positively affected weighed intake, energy intake, overall liking and food-evoked emotion of maize soup. Slight changes of meal appearance by adding visually appetising toppings could be an effective method to encourage older consumers’ food consumption. In addition, combined sensory enhancement for food could have synergetic effect on older people’s food consumption and eating experience.     

Predictors of food acceptance,consumption and satisfaction in specific eating situations

Three studies were conducted to examine the relationship of pre-test ratings of consumer food preferences (liking/disliking in response to a food name), expected liking/disliking, and situational appropriateness with post-test measures of liking/disliking, consumption and satisfaction in specific eating situations. A pre-test survey of 115 consumers assessed general preferences, expected liking/disliking, and appropriateness of 22 foods and beverages in 10 different use situations. The data showed a strong association between pre-test ratings of food appropriateness and expected liking/disliking. In the first experiment, subjects received an appropriate or inappropriate food at a lunch meal. In the second, subjects received a food item in either an appropriate or inappropriate social situation. Liking/disliking and consumption were poorly predicted from simple food preference measures. Better prediction was obtained by a combination of pre-test variables, but the variance accounted for was low. A likely factor influencing the results was the subjects' pre-test assumptions about the specific characteristics of the meal situation and how these matched or mismatched the actual meal conditions. In the third experiment, subjects received food items that varied in sensory quality at either an appropriate or inappropriate mealtime. In addition to the variables measured in Experiments 1 and 2, pre-test expected sensory attributes, post-test sensory attributes, judgments of whether the foods were “better or worse than expected” and “satisfaction” were collected. Results showed significant effects of both food quality and food appropriateness on all post-test variables, and confirmed the high degree of association between appropriateness and expected liking/disliking ratings found previously. Food preferences were again found to be poor predictors of post-test measures, while appropriateness and expected liking ratings were found to be good predictors of post-test appropriateness and food satisfaction ratings. Lastly, satisfaction was better predicted by both pre- and post-test variables than were either liking/disliking or consumption measures. Overall, the results show that the prediction of any aspect of consumer behavior toward foods in real life situations is extremely difficult. Although judicious use of multiple pre-test variables can improve prediction, much of the variability in liking, satisfaction, or consumption still remains unaccounted.     

Explaining the liking for drinking yoghurt: The role of sensory quality,food choice motives,health concern and product information

The influence of sensory and non-sensory product characteristics and consumer-related factors, such as demographics, food choice motives, and health concern, on liking for four drinking yoghurt flavours was studied using a three-block L-partial least squares regression method. Degrees of liking for yoghurt flavours were evaluated in a consumer test (n = 162) under two conditions: blind and with full product information available. The food choice motives of the members of the consumer panel and data on their concern for food and health were collected using validated questionnaires. Food choice motives were connected to the liking. Subjects who considered natural content, ethical concern, and health as important food choice motives perceived sourer, thicker, and more genuine yoghurt flavour as more pleasant, compared to subjects who considered convenience, price, mood, and familiarity more important, evaluated sweeter and smoother yoghurt as more pleasant.     

Influence of brand information on consumers’ expectations and liking of powdered drinks in central location tests

The aim of the present work was to study the influence of brand on consumers’ expectations and liking of orange-flavoured powdered drinks. Ten samples of orange-flavoured powdered drinks were evaluated by 108 consumers who scored their expected liking (looking at the pack only) and the overall liking under blind and informed-testing conditions (tasting the products). Consumers were also asked to answer a check-all-that-apply question with eight statements related to some products’ characteristics and usage occasions. Results showed that brand and package information had a large impact on consumers’ liking scores only for well-recognized brands. Hierarchical multiple factor analysis performed on liking scores for the three evaluation conditions showed that informed liking scores were closer to expected liking scores than to blind liking scores, suggesting that brand information was more important than hedonic reaction to the sensory characteristics in determining consumers’ liking scores for the samples on the informed condition.     

The silver sensory experience – A review of senior consumers’ food perception,liking and intake

It is commonly assumed that sensory impairments occurring with age negatively affect older people’s intake of foods in terms of both quality and quantity. This review discusses evidence published on the effects of age on sensory perception and the consequences for independently living seniors’ perception, liking and intake of food products. Because of anatomical changes in all the senses involved in human food perception, on average seniors perceive a lower flavour intensity than younger adults, are less sensitive to changes in the flavour profile of foods, and show a decreased ability to discriminate between different intensity levels of flavour and/or taste attributes. However, despite these differences in their sensory perception of foods, young adults and seniors seem to differ less in their initial hedonic appraisal of food products. Nonetheless, more research is needed to determine whether multisensory enrichment of foods across different modalities may lead to increased food liking in seniors both with and without olfactory impairment. Although limited, the current evidence suggests that sensory performance may be positively associated with BMI or body weight in specific senior populations. In addition, seniors fail to show a decreased appreciation of an eaten food, thereby increasing the risk of a monotonous diet. Taken together, these findings highlight the need for appropriate interventions and/or foods to improve and maintain adequate quantity and quality of food intake among independently living seniors, and especially those with low sensory performance. Such interventions should be holistic rather than focused on one modality and may also incorporate hedonic modulators such as past experiences, affective factors and external cues, e.g. brand names, labels or food packaging. In interventions and product development, segmentation of the senior consumer market is strongly advised to identify more homogeneous subgroups in order to deal with the large heterogeneity between independently living seniors. It is concluded that one size of the silver food experience will most likely not fit all senior consumers!     

Sweetness preferences for a sports-drink among US and Asian consumers

As the global market expands, it is critical that researchers understand how cultural factors influence the expectations and liking for a food product. The objectives of this study were to identify the optimal sweetness level for a sports-drink for consumers originating from different countries and to investigate the factors affecting the optimal sweetness level. In the first study, respondents (n=372) originated from 5 Asian countries and US tasted and evaluated the sports-drink at 4 sweetener levels. Consumers (n=256) from 3 Asian countries and US participated in the second study. Consumers evaluated the concept and sensory expectations for the ‘lemon-lime flavored’ sports-drink and other beverages. The optimal sweetness level for the sports-drink was lower for Americans than Asians. The familiarity to the product was a key factor affecting the optimal sweetener level. The results also suggested that information can differently influence the product acceptance depending on one’s familiarity with the product.     

Factors associated with food liking and their relationship with metabolic traits in Italian cohorts

Food preferences are influenced by a large number of physiological, nutritional, environmental, sociocultural and genetic factors. From previous studies, survey-reported food likings may reflect habitual intake, being cognitively simple to recall than intake, and have associated with risk factor for diet-related diseases.This work was secondary analysis of a large dataset of personal, clinical and lifestyle measures from 3219 Italian adults to investigate: 1) factors associated with food liking; 2) the relationship between food liking and metabolic phenotypes.Seven food liking groups (alcoholic beverages, cheeses, fish, fruit, meat, sweets foods and vegetables) were defined based on a questionnaire completed by each participant.Multivariate regression analyses showed that factors such as age, gender, education and food behaviour were related with food liking groups. For example, males reported significantly greater liking for alcoholic beverages, fish and meat and a lower liking for vegetables, fruit and sweet foods. Greater liking for all foods was associated with greater self-reported willingness to try unfamiliar foods (food adventurousness).In multivariate regression models and independently from other measures, food liking groups were associated with adiposity, serum lipids, fasting glucose and systolic blood pressure. For instance, greater adiposity was associated with higher liking for meat and cheeses, while higher HDL-cholesterol was associated with higher vegetables liking.Our results from a large adult cohort highlight that many factors may shape survey-reported food liking and suggest their link with metabolic measures.     

Identification of Drivers of Liking for Bar‐Type Snacks Based on Individual Consumer Preference

Understanding consumer hedonic responses on food products are of greatest interests in global food industry. A global partial least square regression (GPLSR) had been well accepted method for understanding consumer preferences. Recently, individual partial least square regression (IPLSR) was accepted as an alternative method of predicting consumer preferences on given food product, because it utilizes the individual differences on product acceptability. To improve the understanding of what constitutes bar‐type snack preference, the relationship between sensory attributes and consumer overall liking for 12 bar‐type snacks was determined. Sensory attributes that drive consumer product likings were analyzed using averaged‐consumer data by GPLSR. To facilitate the interpretation of individual consumer liking, a dummy matrix for the significant weighted regression coefficients of each consumer derived from IPLSR was created. From the application of GPLSR and IPLSR, current study revealed that chocolate and cereal‐flavored bars were preferred over fruit‐flavored bars. Attributes connected to chocolate flavor positively influenced consumer overall likings on the global and individual consumer levels. Textural attributes affected liking only on the individual level. To fully capture the importance of sensory attributes on consumer preference, the use of GPLSR in conjunction with IPLSR is recommended.     

The importance of liking of appearance, -odour, -taste and -texture in the evaluation of overall liking. A comparison with the evaluation of sensory satisfaction

The response variable of overall liking is often used to measure consumers’ overall hedonic response to food. However, little research is done to understand, if liking of all four sensory modalities; appearance, odour, taste and texture, are reflected in the evaluation of overall liking, or if a single sensory modality stands out and is of most importance. The term sensory satisfaction was recently introduced as an alternative to overall liking and should (at least in theory) be used by consumers as a more holistic response variable than overall liking. The aim of the analyses reported in the present paper were, to study the importance of the sensory modalities (liking of appearance, odour, taste and texture) in consumers’ evaluation of overall liking and compare the findings to the importance of the sensory modalities (liking of appearance, odour, taste and texture) in consumers’ evaluation of sensory satisfaction. The data came from a cross-over consumer case-study on apple-cherry fruit drinks (n = 67). The fruit drinks varied in: type of sweetener used, and addition of aroma and fibre. The modalities driving overall liking and sensory satisfaction were studied through slopes of a regression line relating overall liking and sensory satisfaction, respectively, to liking of the sensory modalities: liking of appearance, -odour, -taste and -texture. Results showed the steepest slope between overall liking and liking of taste, whereas the least steep slope was found for liking of odour. The same pattern between slopes was found for sensory satisfaction and overall liking. Therefore, it was concluded that consumers primarily paid attention to liking of taste (to be understood as flavour) and least attention to liking of odour, when evaluating overall liking and sensory satisfaction, respectively, and that consumers did not use sensory satisfaction as a more holistic response variable than overall liking.     

Likelihood of buying healthy convenience food: An at-home testing procedure for ready-to-heat meals

The aim of this study is to determine drivers of consumers’ likelihood of buying healthy convenience meals. Convenience meals, like hamburger, pizza and other fast food meals are often perceived as unhealthy food choices, and previous studies have stated different drivers of convenience and healthy food choices.In this study, a new concept of a complete and healthy ready-to-heat (RTH) meal was developed and tested in an at-home study in Norway. Since previous at-home testing of meals has been conducted on products like soup and lasagne, we adapted a new procedure for at-home testing of more complex meals.Based on an extensive literature review of factors previously found to influence consumers’ healthy food choice, a model was developed and tested by multifactor ANOVA and multiple regression. The results indicate that the likelihood of buying healthy convenience food is first of all affected by overall liking of the meal, which is affected by liking of sensory specific product attributes like appearance, flavour, and odour. Effects of socio-demographic factors are found to be product dependent. Gender, age, education, as well as the interaction between health orientation and age, education and age, and education and overall liking influence consumers’ likelihood of buying the salmon meal, while no significant socio-demographic drivers are found for the chicken meal.     

Influence of information about manufacturing process on beer acceptability

The purpose of this study is to investigate the extent to which consumer information concerning the manufacturing processes of beer can influence how acceptable the product is to the consumer. In this study subjects were informed that the beer had been produced (1) using genetically modified yeast; (2) with organic barley and hops, and (3) using traditional brewing technology. Three products were selected to represent high, moderate and low acceptability. A blind evaluation of the selected samples was followed by an assessment of the subjects' expectations of the sample products based on the different information about product processing. The impact of these expectations on liking after tasting the product was examined and demonstrated that information regarding manufacturing technology is capable of modifying the consumers' liking of beer. The disconfirmation that occurred as a result of different product–information combinations revealed that liking moved towards their expectations (assimilation). However assimilation was not complete, indicating that sensory properties of products were important in determining perceived quality. Finally, the present study does not entirely confirm findings of previous research. Combining different information with different levels of product liking may lead to a better understanding of the asymmetry of disconfirmation.     

Effects of cricket powder on selected physical properties and US consumer perceptions of whole-wheat snack crackers

Successful introduction of insect consumption to a reluctant US population requires novel insect-based foods that are responsive to consumers’ expectations of sensory quality. Based on our ‘product appropriateness’ data, snack crackers were formulated with increasing levels of cricket powder (0%, 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%) in substitution of whole-wheat flour. Colour, texture, flavour and overall perceptions of snack crackers were evaluated by 150 US consumers in terms of preference (2-alternative choice), degree of liking (9-point scale) and acceptability (yes/no). Flavour liking was most highly correlated with overall liking (r = 0.93). Instrumental analyses indicated that increasing cricket powder resulted in darker and harder crackers, negatively impacting colour and texture preference at 5% and 15% cricket powder addition, respectively. Snack crackers remained acceptable at 15% wheat flour substitution (80% acceptability; mean overall liking = 5.5). However, to promote future consumption, an upper limit of 7.9% cricket powder addition is recommended until sensory quality can be improved.