Sensory Analysis in Food Science and Technology: Challenges, Innovations, and Future Perspectives
A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Sensory and Consumer Sciences".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 October 2026 | Viewed by 159
Special Issue Editors
Interests: food technology; novel foods; sensory analysis; bread; shelf life; wine; olive oil; spices; food waste; food quality; process control
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: sensory analysis; food technology; novel foods; bread; shelf life; wine; olive oil; spices; food waste; food quality; process control
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
The food sector still faces the challenge of developing products that combine high quality, technological efficiency, and strong consumer acceptance. In this context, sensory analysis provides scientifically validated methodologies to measure and interpret human responses to food stimuli. Originally conceived for quality control and discrimination testing, it has progressively evolved into an integrated framework that supports product characterization, technological optimization, and the interpretation of consumer perception within complex food systems.
Validated sensory methodologies enable accurate definition of product identity and attribute profiling, while also serving as effective tools for process control and quality monitoring throughout the production chain. In parallel, the evaluation of consumer response has gained increasing relevance, extending beyond hedonic assessment to include preference mapping and emotion-based approaches that provide deeper insight into acceptance and experiential dimensions of food consumption.
This Special Issue aims to consolidate and advance the role of sensory analysis in food science and technology through three interconnected pillars:
(i) Product characterization, focusing on descriptive, discriminative, and rapid methodologies for defining product identity and sensory quality;
(ii) Process control and optimization, highlighting the use of sensory tools to monitor technological variables and ensure product consistency;
(iii) Consumer response evaluation, including affective, preference, and emotion-based approaches to understand acceptance and guide innovation.
Contributions integrating sensory data with instrumental measurements, digital tools, and advanced statistical modeling are also encouraged.
Dr. Isabella Taglieri
Dr. Francesca Venturi
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Foods is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- sensory analysis
- product characterization
- process control
- consumer response
- food quality
- sensory methodologies
- food innovation
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