Effect of product properties and context on the perception of sweetness and liking: A case study with butter cookies

Abstract

Consumption context has been shown to significantly contribute to food acceptance, probably because of affecting food attributes' perception. The present study investigated the influence of multisensory reformulation on the acceptance and perceived sweetness of butter cookies in two contexts (Central Location Test, CLT vs. Home Use Test, HUT). The objective was to determine whether the use of some natural aromas could trigger a sweet‐taste‐like emotional response in a confectionery product, and if consumption in a real context could aid in masking the reformulation. Results showed that a 40% reduction in sugar content did not affect overall liking in the at‐home‐context (HUT), unless a “low in sugar” message was shown in the sample. Reformulation was perceived in the CLT: the “sugar‐reduced” sample was less liked, but the “Sugar‐reduced+vanilla” sample was as liked as the original sample. These results demonstrated that a multisensory approach could contribute to reformulation even when perceived by consumers. Practical Applications The insights collected during this research sum to the understanding of the relationship among sweet stimuli‐context‐perception and could be used for industry to reformulate and reduce sugar content in specific bakery products. A multisensory approach could be a useful approach to reformulate sweet products, because acceptance has been shown to be kept even in controlled and focused contexts. Labeling with a “low in sugar” message would not be recommended unless other messages related to taste or flavor are included. In addition, results contribute to the general understanding of sweet products perception and consumption, useful information for the design of healthy food eating environments and to promote healthy food choices among for the general population.

Electrodermal response and its relationship with explicit response in controlled and real contexts: A case study with different beer styles

“…It is possible that the explicit response collected in the sensory lab was different from the one recorded in the restaurant because the real context experiment included the effect of the whole drinking experience, and therefore provided a more realistic consumer response to the products. On the contrary, the controlled context may have contributed to focusing on the differences among samples' flavor, similarly as reported by Romeo-Arroyo,Mora, Pazos, Deba-Rementeria, and Vázquez-Araújo (2022) in a study conducted on cookies samples assessed in a controlled context and using a Home-Use-Test approach. Despite the limited information offered by the implicit data, using a real context approach was suitable to collect the signals and product differentiation was possible with the proper data process and analysis, opening possibilities to further research in real context using implicit response technologies.…”

Tea pairings: Impact of aromatic congruence on acceptance and sweetness perception

“…Even though MintC and GreenT were rated less sweet than the rest of the samples, when combined with non-congruent teas/cookies, sweetness was slightly enhanced ( Table 5 ). Previous research has shown that vanilla could be used to enhance the perception of sweetness in cookies ( Romeo-Arroyo et al, 2022 ). It is known that olfactory stimuli that have regularly been paired with sweet-tasting foods (e.g., vanilla, strawberry) could enhance the associated taste quality ( Spence, 2015 ).…”

Age‐related changes in sweetness perception: Exploring the role of cross‐modal interactions

“…Aroma has been shown to be a potential sweetness enhancer in several studies (Bertelsen et al, 2021;Boakes & Hemberger, 2012;Proserpio et al, 2021;Wang et al, 2019). Previous research has shown that a 40% reduction in the sugar content of a cookie sample did not affect overall liking when adding vanilla aroma in both controlled and real home-use-test contexts (Romeo-Arroyo et al, 2022). Also, Danish and Chinese consumers rated different sweeteners samples with added vanilla aroma higher in sweet taste intensity than samples without added aroma, although some differences were found between consumers' ratings (Bertelsen et al, 2021).…”