This paper focuses on the effect of the COVID-19 lockdown on the dietary habits of adult Danes. Two aspects were specifically considered: 1) reported changes in intake of specific food categories and 2) effect on healthy eating, operationalized as adherence to the Mediterranean diet (MEDAS score). Respondents (N = 2,462) completed a 44-items self-administered online survey designed for the assessment of their socio-demographic characteristics, general food habits, and consumption frequency of selected foods (mainly related to the MedDiet) during the lockdown. The data indicated that the lockdown has affected dietary habits of adult Danes to a relatively limited degree. The most important findings were that a substantial proportion of respondents (≥28%) reported eating more, snacking more, exercising less, and gaining weight during the lockdown. Results could be linked to the amount of time spent at home (e.g., a higher cooking frequency) a higher degree of emotional eating during the lockdown (e.g., a higher consumption of pastries and alcohol). Women were generally affected to a higher degree than men. Additionally, dietary changes during the lockdown to a certain degree reflected pre-existing (un)healthy eating habits, as positive health outcomes were observed in respondents with a high MEDAS score and negative outcomes (e.g., weight gain and higher intakes of pastries and carbonated beverages) were associated with respondents with a low MEDAS score. These changes, if sustained long-term, are potentially concerning from a public health perspective, especially given that more than half of the respondents were characterized by a low adherence to the MedDiet.
The demand for high quality and specialty coffee is increasing worldwide. In order to meet these demands, a more uniform and standardized quality assessment of coffee is essential. The aim of this study was to make a sensory scientific and chemical characterization of common roasting defects in coffee, and to investigate their potential relevance for consumers' acceptance of coffee. To this end, six time-temperature roasting profiles based on a single origin Arabica bean were developed: one 'normal', representing a reference coffee free of defects, and five common roast defects ('dark', 'light', 'scorched', 'baked' and 'underdeveloped'. The coffee samples obtained from these beans were evaluated by means of 1) aroma analysis by Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS), 2) sensory descriptive analysis (DA) by trained assessors, and 3) hedonic and sensory evaluation by consumers using a Check-All-That-Apply (CATA) questionnaire. Multivariate analyses of aroma, DA, and CATA data produced similar sample spaces, showing a clear opposition of the light roast to the dark and scorched roasts), with the normal roast having average values of key aroma compounds. The DA data confirmed this indications and showed the normal roast to have a balanced sensory profile compared to the other defects. Importantly, the normal roast was also significantly preferred in the consumer
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