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Impact of Consumer’s Emotions and Sensory Profiling on Food Acceptance, Preference and Choice

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A special issue of Foods (ISSN 2304-8158). This special issue belongs to the section "Sensory and Consumer Sciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 March 2023) | Viewed by 10661

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Joachim J. Schouteten

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Guest Editor

Department of Agricultural Economics, Ghent University, Gent, Belgium
Interests: sensory analysis; flavor; taste; consumer

Prof. Dr. Xavier Gellynck

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Guest Editor

Department of Agricultural Economics, Ghent University, Gent, Belgium
Interests: chain management; agri-food marketing; consumer

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The focus of consumer and sensory food research has shifted beyond the hedonic measurements with consumers the last decade. Reasoning behind this is that the concept of overall acceptability or liking cannot be seen as a sufficient benchmark for product success or sale prediction. Therefore, there is a growing interest in examining how consumers perceive the sensory attributes of food products and how they feel when they are consuming food products. By including measurements related to rapid sensory profiling and /or conceptualisations of food products, it is possible to have a better understanding on what eventually thrives consumers’ food acceptance, preference, and choice.

This Special Issue of Foods aims to publish both original and cutting-edge research and comprehensive reviews, contributing to a deeper understanding of sensory profiling, food-evoked emotions, food choice, preference, acceptance, and consumption, which is a valuable source of information for research and development, product innovation, and marketing that goes beyond traditional sensory preference and acceptability measurement. Papers from multi- and interdisciplinary perspectives, such as food and sensory sciences, culinology and gastronomy, nutrition and health sciences, psychology, business and marketing, and consumer behavior, are highly desirable and very welcome.

Dr. Joachim J. Schouteten
Prof. Dr. Xavier Gellynck
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 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

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

food-evoked emotions, sensory profiling
rapid sensory profiling techniques
consumer
sensory evaluation
acceptance
food choice
food preference

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 3353 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Effect of Response Conditions on Food Images-Evoked Emotions Measured Using the Valence × Arousal Circumplex-Inspired Emotion Questionnaire (CEQ)

by Han-Seok Seo, Lydia Rockers and Young-Gab Kim

Foods 2023, 12(11), 2250; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12112250 - 02 Jun 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1963

Abstract

In 2020, a single-response-based, valence × arousal circumplex-inspired emotion questionnaire (CEQ) was developed. Using a between-participants design, previous studies have found that a multiple response (MR) condition better discriminated test samples (e.g., written food names) based on their evoked emotions than a single response (SR) condition. This research, comprising Studies 1 and 2, aimed to determine the effect of response conditions (i.e., SR vs. MR) on emotional responses to food image samples, using a within-participants design. In Study 1, 105 Korean participants were asked to select a pair of emotion terms (i.e., SR condition) or select all pairs representing their evoked emotions (i.e., MR condition) from a list of 12 pairs of emotion terms of the CEQ, in response to the 14 food images. Both SR and MR conditions were tested within a remote (online) session. To minimize both a potential carry-over effect of the “within-participants design” and an influence of environmental factors in the remote testing, Study 2 asked 64 U.S. participants to do so over two separated sessions on two different days in a controlled laboratory setting. In both Studies 1 and 2, participants selected the CEQ’s emotion-term pairs in the MR condition more frequently than in the SR condition, leading to the MR condition’s higher capacity to discriminate test samples. While the configurations of the correspondence analysis biplots drawn in the SR and MR conditions were similar, those in the MR condition were more likely to be similar to the configurations of the principal component analysis biplots drawn from the ratings of valence and arousal for food image samples. In conclusion, this study provides robust empirical evidence that the MR condition can perform better in capturing sample differences in food-evoked emotions, while the SR condition is also effective in characterizing emotional profiles of test samples. Our findings will provide practical insights to sensory professionals, enabling them to effectively leverage the CEQ or its variants when measuring food-evoked emotions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Consumer’s Emotions and Sensory Profiling on Food Acceptance, Preference and Choice)

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15 pages, 809 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Consumer Sentiments and Emotions in New Seafood Product Concept Development: A Co-Creation Approach Using Online Discussion Rooms in Croatia, Italy and Spain

by Marta Verza, Luca Camanzi, Cosimo Rota, Marija Cerjak, Luca Mulazzani and Giulio Malorgio

Foods 2023, 12(8), 1729; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12081729 - 21 Apr 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1563

Abstract

Growing Mediterranean seafood consumption, increasing consumers’ awareness of food safety and quality, and changing food lifestyles are leading to the development of new food products. However, the majority of new food products launched on the market are expected to fail within the first year. One of the most effective ways to enhance new product success is by involving consumers during the first phases of New Product Development (NPD), using the so-called co-creation approach. Based on data collected through online discussion rooms, two new seafood product concepts—sardine fillets and sea burgers—were evaluated by a set of potential consumers in three Mediterranean countries—Italy, Spain, and Croatia. Textual information was analyzed by first using the topic modeling technique. Then, for each main topic identified, sentiment scores were calculated, followed by the identification of the main related emotions that were evoked. Overall, consumers seem to positively evaluate both proposed seafood product concepts, and three recurrent positive emotions (trust, anticipation, joy) were identified in relation to the main topics aroused during the discussions. The results of this study will be useful to guide future researchers and actors in this industry in the next development steps of the targeted seafood products in Mediterranean countries. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Consumer’s Emotions and Sensory Profiling on Food Acceptance, Preference and Choice)

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16 pages, 2118 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Food-Evoked Emotions and Optimal Portion Sizes of Meat and Vegetables for Men and Women across Five Familiar Dutch Meals: An Online Study

by Maria Isabel Salazar Cobo, Gerry Jager, Cees de Graaf and Elizabeth H. Zandstra

Foods 2023, 12(6), 1259; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12061259 - 16 Mar 2023

Viewed by 1725

Abstract

Portion size manipulation is well known to be effective in increasing vegetable intake in adults, whereas less is known about the effects of portion size manipulation on reducing meat intake. This online study investigated the effects of recommended and regularly consumed portion sizes of vegetables and meat in five familiar Dutch meals. Participants evaluated 60 food pictures of five meals and used a 100 mm VAS to measure expected liking, satiety, food-evoked emotions, and the perceived normal portion size. The results show that both regular and recommended portions scored above 55 on the 100 mm VAS on expected liking and satiety. Similarly, both portion sizes scored high (55–70 on the 100 mm VAS) in positive emotions (i.e., happy, relaxed, and satisfied). Regarding the perceived amount of meat, men consistently preferred larger portions of meat than women. However, the optimal portion sizes of vegetables were similar for men and women. Furthermore, the recommended portion sizes led to positive food-evoked emotions, implying that the effective implementation of portion size strategies for increasing vegetable and limiting meat intake requires a careful, holistic approach focusing on the sensory characteristics of food products as well as the emotions evoked by the total food experience. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Consumer’s Emotions and Sensory Profiling on Food Acceptance, Preference and Choice)

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11 pages, 1130 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Microwave Roasting as an Alternative to Convection Roasting: Sensory Analysis and Physical Characterization of Dark Chocolate

by Joachim J. Schouteten, Valérie Lemarcq, Davy Van de Walle, Eleni Sioriki and Koen Dewettinck

Foods 2023, 12(4), 887; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods12040887 - 19 Feb 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2110

Abstract

Roasting cocoa beans by means of microwave radiations seems to be a potential alternative to convection roasting, but little is known about the impact of this method on the perceived flavor profile of the chocolate. Therefore, this research focused on revealing the flavor perception of chocolate produced with microwave roasted cocoa beans assessed by both a trained panel and chocolate consumers. Samples of 70% dark chocolate produced from cocoa beans microwave roasted at 600 W for 35 min were compared with samples of 70% dark chocolate produced from cocoa beans convectively roasted at 130 °C for 30 min. Non-significant differences (p > 0.05) in the measured physical properties, such as color, hardness, melting, and flow behavior, showed that chocolate produced from microwave roasted cocoa beans can exhibit the same physical qualities as convection roasted chocolate. Moreover, combined discriminative triangle tests, with 27 judgements in total, performed by a trained panel, showed that each type of chocolate exhibited distinctive characteristics (d’-value = 1.62). Regarding the perceived flavor, “cocoa aroma” was cited as significantly higher for the chocolate produced from microwave roasted cocoa beans (n = 112) compared to chocolate produced from convection roasted cocoa beans (n = 100) by consumers. Both preference and willingness to buy were higher, though insignificant at a 5% level, for the microwave roasted chocolate. A final potential benefit (studied in this research) of microwave roasting cocoa beans is the reduced energy consumption, which was estimated at 75%. Taking all these results together, the microwave roasting of cocoa is shown to be a promising alternative to convection roasting. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Consumer’s Emotions and Sensory Profiling on Food Acceptance, Preference and Choice)

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15 pages, 1428 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Attitudes towards Freshly Made and Readily Prepared Texture-Modified Foods among Speech-Language Therapists, Dietitians, and Community-Dwelling Older Adults

by Xiaojing Sharon Wu, Anna Miles and Andrea Braakhuis

Foods 2022, 11(14), 2157; https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11142157 - 20 Jul 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2253

Abstract

Texture-modified foods (TMFs) are recommended for patients suffering from swallowing difficulties. Given the increasing aging population, the use of TMFs is on the rise. Research to date has focused on the nutritional value, malnutrition indices and healthcare practices in relation to TMFs, but the perception of these diets from a patient and healthcare practitioner perspective has received less consideration. This study explored how currently available TMFs (including Soft & Bite-Sized, Minced & Moist, and puree) are perceived by key stakeholders. Four types of TMFs were consumer tested: freshly made TMFs following foodservice recipes and three types of readily prepared TMFs (commercially packaged, sous-vide and hydrolysed). The selected samples were tested through five focus groups (including nine dietitians, seven speech-language therapists, and five community-dwelling older adults), which involved a sensory rating using a validated 7-point scale meal assessment tool and a semi-structured focus group discussion. Analysis was conducted using quantitative and qualitative approaches. Soft & Bite-Sized meals had significantly higher palatability ratings than others. Sous-vide meals were most suitable for Soft & Bite-Sized texture, while commercially packaged samples were most appropriate for minced moist and pureed meals. Three main themes emerged through content analysis: (1) palatability of TMFs, (2) perceived challenges with the currently available TMFs and (3) key differences in opinion between stakeholders. Freshly made TMFs were more appealing and tastier, whereas readily prepared (pre-cooked, packaged and require reheating) TMFs had a more consistent texture. The texture of all TMFs requires enhancement, particularly in pureed meals. Developing nutritious and safe TMFs for people with dysphagia requires the promotion of active insight exchange between dietitians and speech-language therapists. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Impact of Consumer’s Emotions and Sensory Profiling on Food Acceptance, Preference and Choice)

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