Acceptance of Nordic snack bars in children aged 8–11 years

Abstract

BackgroundA health promoting diet is suggested to be tailored to regional circumstances to preserve the cultural diversity in eating habits, as well as contribute to more environmentally friendly eating. It may influence consumer acceptance, however, if the components of the diet differs considerably from their habitual food.ObjectiveThis study aimed to investigate whether snack bars composed of Nordic ingredients were accepted by 8–11 year-old Danish (n=134) and Swedish (n=109) children.DesignA seven-point hedonic scale was used to measure the children's acceptance of five snack bars that varied in their composition of whole grains, berries and nuts. A preference rank ordering of the five bars was also performed.ResultsThe results showed that samples that were rated highest in liking and were most preferred in both countries were a kamut/pumpkin bar and an oat/cranberry bar. The sample with the lowest rating that was also least preferred was a pumpernickel/sea buckthorn bar. Flavour was the most important determinant of overall liking followed by texture, odour and appearance.ConclusionsChildren's acceptances and preferences were highly influenced by the sensory characteristics of the bars, mainly flavour. In agreement with earlier studies, the novel food ingredients seemed to influence children's preferences. The Nordic snack bars may have a potential to be a snack option for Danish and Swedish school children, but repeated exposures to the products are recommended to increase children's acceptance.

Nutritional Value and Consumer Acceptance of New Cereal Bars Offered to Children

“…The calculated nutritional value in terms of caloric value was similar to that of products containing oat and cranberry manufactured in Nordic countries [Holmer et al, 2012]. Compared to the analyzed commercial products (Table 4), the nutritional value of the designed bars was distinguished by a higher content of fi ber and proteins.…”

“…The assayed fat content in designed bars was 22% and was similar to fat content determined in products containing oat and cranberry manufactured in Nordic countries (Denmark and Sweden) [Holmer et al, 2012] while lower in comparison with various bars designed by Estevez et al [1995], containing different proportions of oat and popped amaranth seed. When comparing the nutritional value of the designed snack bars with commercial products analyzed by Paszczyk et al [2007], the designed bars are characterized by a considerably lower fat content.…”

“…Although children have a reasonable understanding of healthy eating, they are less effective in putting this knowledge into practice in order to sustain a healthy eating pattern [Bower & Sandall, 2002]. To help children make better food choices, healthier snack options should be easily available [Holmer et al, 2012]. Nowadays there is a trend to produce natural, nutritious snacks according with the tendency to reduce consumption of sugary sweets [Estevez et al, 1995].…”

“…Our results confi rmed observations of Hausner et al [2012] that sweetness is considered to be the most important dimension determining children's food preferences. Nordic elementary school children suggested improving the snack bars by making them sweeter [Holmer et al, 2012].…”

“…Whole grains and berries are recommended for young organisms as an important part of diet, because of their high nutritional value and health benefi ts [Holmer et al, 2012]. Oat is appropriate for bars enrichment due to considerable content of dietary fi ber, especially its soluble fraction, with a predominating contribution of β-glucans having special physiological effects.…”