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The perceived need to reduce dietary fat consumption has produced intense activity throughout the food industry. Previous exploratory work has indicated that flavour characteristics can influence consumer enjoyment of foods, and reducing the fat content of foods can adversely affect flavour characteristics in comparison with those of full‐fat equivalents. However, there is little work reported in this area in the scientific literature. The Leatherhead Food RA and the Institute of Food Research, Reading, are therefore collaborating on a MAFF‐LINK project with ten industrial partners on improving the flavour acceptability of reduced‐fat foods. The project aims to quantify and model the relationship between fat content and the perceived flavour and flavour‐release characteristics of processed foods and to provide guidance to the industrial partners in developing reduced‐fat foods with improved flavour characteristics.

The purpose of this paper is to assess how shelf-life labelling affects the sensory acceptability of potato snacks.

The panel of assessors determined the key sensory attributes. Subsequently, affective sensory consumer testing was conducted. The samples of potato snacks with labels suggesting valid and false shelf life or without dating information were presented to 110 students. They rated the degree of colour intensity, oxidised flavour and crispness liking with the use of hedonic scale and accepted or rejected the sample. The testing was carried out in a sensory laboratory.

Shelf-life labelling affects the overall acceptability of potato snacks, perception of crispness and oxidative flavour. These attributes were rated less favourably when the label suggested post-expiration. The influence of shelf-life labelling decreased with storage time period. Consumers are more willing to trust their own perception than labelling.

The product may be rejected not only because of quality depletion when the shelf life is overestimated, but also as a result of denigration when the shelf life is underestimated.

Date legislation is necessary but it may be not sufficient without consumer education on food labelling and safety.

Research on the influence of shelf-life labelling on the sensory acceptability of food is scarce. Understanding how consumers are affected by shelf-life information has important implications for both public policy as well as food manufacturers.

With the recent publication in the UK of draft legislation referring to the introduction of food irradiation in 1991, the food industry, consumers and regulatory authorities have at last had the opportunity to assess the likely impact of this controversial new process. Food categories to be licensed for irradiation are based on those under discussion within the EEC, with some modifications of more direct relevance to the UK. In this article the technological justifications for food irradiation are examined, together with the possible applications within the permitted food categories.

Despite public unease, certain irradiated foods will be legally on sale in the UK in 1990. The irradiation process is outlined and its applications described. At present 36 countries have legalised the process and more than 40 different foods are treated. Although the process has as yet no detection method, all products so treated will be identified. The main initial application in the UK will probably be spices and herbs, whose decontamination is currently problematic.

Fruit and vegetables are important components of a healthy diet, and their textural characteristics are important in determining consumer choice. The food industry needs reliable instrumental methods to measure the textural quality of fresh produce, but also needs to ensure that the instruments measure characteristics important to consumers. A study was carried out to probe consumer understanding of textural characteristics, and to relate their perceptions to sensory profiles developed by trained panels. The results were correlated with instrumental texture measurements, and included sound emitted during fracture. Consumers had a clearer understanding of the nature of crunchiness, in contrast with crispness, and good correlations were found with the instrumental parameter, fracture toughness.

The aim of this study is to identify descriptions involved in defining the concept of freshness from a consumer perspective.

A total of 559 subjects recruited in supermarkets of different cities and villages in Switzerland were asked to write down their understanding of freshness in general, and for fruits and vegetables in particular. Direct elicitation by means of an open‐ended questionnaire was used.

Respondents mentioned a large variety of descriptors in relationship with fresh fruits and vegetables. Results suggest that freshness describes a level of closeness to the original product, in terms of distance, time and processing. Respondents having more contact with the place of fruit and vegetable production mentioned non‐sensory attributes more frequently, whereas those having fewer contacts mentioned sensory attributes more frequently. It can be concluded that consumers have a collective concept of freshness but they use their different everyday experiences with fruits and vegetables to describe freshness.

Analysis of open‐ended questionnaires is time‐consuming and difficulties were encountered in the categorisation of phrases. Participants might have been influenced by the environment in supermarkets.

The perception of freshness is influenced by the information consumers have on products. Therefore, the importance of providing sufficient information on the products is emphasized.

The study is the first to extensively investigate the consumer understanding of the term “fresh” in relationship with fruits and vegetables. The use of an open‐ended questionnaire is particularly interesting as it allows greater freedom of expression by the participants compared with other forms of enquiry.

Cottage is a protein-rich food which is commonly consumed by people targeting weight reduction and athletes willing to eat whole-food instead of protein supplements. Yet out of common knowledge, the scientific community lacks solid evidences of the effect of the inclusion of cottage cheese in a diet. The purpose of this paper is to assess the evidences from scientific literature of the impact of inclusion of cottage cheese in a diet.

PubMed and Web of Science were searched for scientific literature dealing with “cottage cheese” and “diet.” There was no restriction regarding the type article type, date nor journal it is published in. References found to during the analysis of the articles extracted from database were also included. Studies search, screening and eligibility analysis were led in parallel by two independent reviewers.

This survey shows that cottage cheese is a good source of calcium (with 83 mg/100 g) – but not low fat cottage cheese because of its low vitamin S content (p < 0.001) –, a source of probiotic (1 serving providing the recommended dietary intake), a source of high quality proteins, reduces postprandial blood glucose level – healthy and type II diabetes subjects – (p < 0.05), is not linked to increased cardiovascular diseases nor cancer risks (p < 0.05).

Based on the findings reported in this review, the inclusion of cottage cheese in a diet can be advised for: women to build up calcium storage to fight osteoporosis; more generally calcium/vitamin D deficient subjects; athletes willing to increase their high-quality proteins intake through whole food consumption; dieters looking for low energy, high protein, high satiety food; untreated type II diabetes patients by reducing postprandial glucose level.

The purpose of this paper is to propose an initial step for understanding the sensory perception and purchase intent of Brazilian olive oil consumers. It also investigates the sensory perception and purchase intent for a Brazilian-made olive oil.

The sample, consisting of 115 surveyed consumers, is described demographically. The aspects related to sensory analysis and purchase intent associated with the key attributes indicated by the consumers are then discussed. Finally, consumer segmentation is carried out to characterize the consumers in more detail, in terms of both demographic and predictive variables for olive oil consumption.

Consumers displayed a sensory perception that is coherent with olive oil characteristics, thus being able to distinguish three different olive oils from a compound oil sample. Regarding purchase intent and preference, consumers showed mixed behaviors, which was not entirely convergent with the identified sensory aspects. Therefore, it was possible to segment them into three distinct groups: utilitarian, naïve, and expert consumers.

Brazil is an emergent olive oil market, which can create both research and business opportunities for the country. This preliminary study contributes to the advancement of this research subject in the non-traditional markets for olive oil.

The purpose of this paper is to examine the changes in sensory qualities of jaew sauce as heat is applied and to determine its acceptance level among Thai and foreign consumers.

Jaew sauce was heated for six hours and samples were collected at 1.5 hours interval. The color of jaew sauce was measured using color spectrophotometer and consumers examined the underlying sensory qualities of jaew sauce using sorting technique. A total of 40 Thai and foreign consumers were asked to sort the commercial and the heated jaew sauce samples according to the similarities and dissimilarities in sensory characteristics and provide descriptions for explanation of each group. A consumer test with 100 Thai and foreign consumers was also conducted to determine the acceptance of jaew sauce.

Alterations in the sensory qualities, mainly color, were observed. Prolong heating resulted in darker color. The sorting results showed that Thai and foreign consumers have similar perception of jaew sauce. Similar groupings of jaew sauce was observed, which could be divided into four groups, commercial, 0 hour heating, 1.5 and 3 hours heating, and 4.5 and 6 hours heating. Agreeing results of both Thai and foreign consumers showed that commercial and 0 hour heating samples were most preferred and the acceptance of jaew sauce decreased as it was heated.

Despite the extensive usage of jaew, very few are available commercially in the market. The fact that Thai and foreign consumers have similar preference infer that jaew sauce has a high potential to be adopted and accepted among foreigners to a large extent if available commercially. This study also provides a basis into further research on an appropriate packaging and shelf-life study of jaew sauce for commercial purposes.

Salt (sodium chloride) is used in a variety of processed foods. It not only confers its own specific flavour on products, it is also used to enhance and modify the flavour of other ingredients. The reasons for using salt can be divided into three broad categories: processing reasons, sensory (taste) reasons, and preservative reasons. In some cases it performs all three of these functions, and in many situations the distinction between them is not clear‐cut.