Consumers Respond Positively to the Sensory, Health, and Sustainability Benefits of the Rare Sugar Allulose in Yogurt Formulations

Increased added sugar consumption is associated with type II diabetes, metabolic syndrome, and cardiovascular disease. Low and no-calorie alternative sweeteners have long been used as an aid in the reduction of added sugar. Unfortunately, these alternative sweeteners often have notable sensory deficits when compared to sucrose. Furthermore, many alternative sweeteners have synthetic origins, while consumers are increasingly turning to foods from natural origins, and from more sustainable sources. Such sweeteners include the rare sugar allulose, which can be manufactured from common agricultural waste and dairy co-product streams, and is reported to have a sensory profile similar to sucrose. This study aimed to determine the influence of the rare sugar allulose on consumer perception of sweetened vanilla yogurt. Participants were recruited to evaluate 4 vanilla yogurts sweetened with either sucrose, allulose, stevia or sucralose, and to rate their liking of the samples overall, and for flavor, texture, and their purchase intent. Statistical analysis of hedonic data from 100 consumers suggested that allulose performed similarly to sucrose in liking and purchase intent, and superior to other sweeteners tested in this study, with fewer off-flavors. Moreover, when consumers were queried on their purchase intent after learning details on the sweetener for each formulation, allulose scored significantly higher than all other formulations in purchase intent. This study highlights the potential of the rare sugar allulose as a low calorie, zero glycemic index, natural and better tasting sugar replacement in sweetened yogurt.

Sugar reduction methods and their application in confections: a review

Many American adults consume almost double the daily recommended amount of sugar. With excess consumption of sugar and consequential health problems arising, food manufacturers are investigating methods to reduce sugar while maintaining similar functional and sensory properties. The body of literature was searched for papers regarding sugar reduction, and the main methods of sugar reduction are summarized herein with a specific focus on high sugar products. Reducing sugar in confections is possible; however, the challenge is maintaining the balance between texture and sweetness perception. Texture plays a large role in the sweetness perception of confections, with firmer products often being perceived as less sweet. Depending on the method, 20-40% of sugar can be removed from confections without sacrificing sensory acceptance, often replaced with multiple ingredients. Further investigation is needed on confection models and how the emerging health trends set the foundation for sugar reduction.

Assessment of Lingual Tactile Sensitivity in Children and Adults: Methodological Suitability and Challenges

Few methodological approaches have been developed to measure lingual tactile sensitivity, and little information exists about the comparison between children and adults. The aims of the study were to: verify the cognitive and perceptive suitability of Von Frey filaments and a gratings orientation test in children of different ages; compare lingual tactile sensitivity between children and adults; investigate the relationships between lingual tactile sensitivity, preference and consumption of foods with different textures and level of food neophobia. One hundred and forty-seven children aged 6-13 years and their parents participated in the study, in addition to a separate sample of seventy adults. Participants filled in questionnaires, and lingual tactile sensitivity was evaluated through filaments and gratings. Results showed that gratings evaluation was more difficult than filaments assessment but enabled a better separation of participants according to their performance than filaments. R-indices from filaments were not correlated with those of gratings, suggesting that the tools measure different dimensions of lingual tactile sensitivity. No differences were found in lingual tactile sensitivity between children and adults, nor between children of different ages. Food neophobia was negatively associated with preferences of hard foods in children. Although a multifactor analysis concluded that neither texture preferences nor food consumption were strongly correlated with lingual tactile sensitivity, there was a weak but significant positive correlation between lingual tactile sensitivity to the finest Von Frey filament and food neophobia in the youngest age group, indicating that children with higher levels of food neophobia are more sensitive to oral tactile stimuli. Suitable child-friendly adaptations for the assessment of lingual sensitivity in children are discussed.

Ternary Cross-Modal Interactions between Sweetness, Aroma, and Viscosity in Different Beverage Matrices

Sugar reduction in food and beverage products involves several challenges. Non-nutritive sweeteners may give unwanted off-flavors, while sugar-reduced products often lack mouthfeel. To overcome this, the addition of aroma to increase sweetness through cross-modal interactions, and the addition of hydrocolloids such as pectin to increase viscosity, have been suggested as strategies to aid sugar reduction. However, viscosity has been shown to decrease both taste and aroma intensities. An increase in viscosity may thereby affect the use of aromas as sweetness enhancers. Additionally, the effects of aromas and hydrocolloids on sweetness intensity and mouthfeel depend on the food matrix involved. The present study investigated cross-modal aroma-sweetness-viscosity interactions in two beverage matrices: water and apple nectar. The perceptual effects of vanilla aroma (0-1 mL/kg), sucrose (2.5%-7.5% w/w) and pectin (0%-0.3% w/w) were studied in both matrices. For each matrix, cross-modal interactions were analyzed with descriptive analysis using a trained sensory panel. The effect of vanilla aroma on sweetness intensity was found to be higher in apple nectar compared to in water. Furthermore, pectin affected neither taste, aroma, nor the cross-modal effects of aroma on taste in either of the matrices. These results indicate that pectin, in the studied range of concentrations, may be used to improve mouthfeel in sugar-reduced beverages, without compromising taste or aroma perception.

Beverage Complexity Yields Unpredicted Power Results for Seven Discrimination Test Methods

The power of discrimination tests is crucial in determining sample size and resources needed for testing. Although research has been conducted on the power analysis of several discrimination testing methods, much of the previous research has focused on basic taste solutions, which may not be directly applicable to food and beverage systems. The objective of the current study was to compare the power of seven discrimination tests: Panelist-Articulated-2-Alternative Forced Choice (PA-2-AFC), triangle, triangle with partial presentation, duo-trio, duo-trio with partial presentation, 4-category rating methods for R-index measure, and same-different pairwise comparison for R-index measure using commercial-type beverage products. Sixty-one prescreened panelists participated in the study. Six product comparisons were performed using tea, tomato juice (three comparisons), citrus-flavored carbonated soda, and cola-flavored carbonated soda. The tests were randomized over two testing sessions for each product comparison. Triangle testing methodologies were found to be overall the most powerful methods across product categories. The PA-2-AFC method was found to be the least powerful across all products. Thurstonian modeling predicts that the PA-2-AFC method would be the most powerful method contrary to the findings of the current study. The products tested were complex in both basic formulations and in changes made between control and variant samples. Complexity of the products may have influenced the discriminability by the panelists using different discrimination tests. Further research should be conducted to characterize the specific influence of sample complexity on the power of discrimination methodology. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: There are several discrimination testing methods that can be selected when determining whether two products are significantly different. A method with high statistical power can allow researchers to save time and resources when addressing this question. The current research compares seven discrimination test methods in order to determine which method results in the highest power for several common commercial-type beverage products. The results from this study demonstrate deviations from Thurstonian model predictions of method power revealing the need to experiment with several methods using commercial-type products commonly tested within a business or research setting prior to selecting an optimal method to use.

Sodium Threshold in Model Reduced and Low Fat Oil-in-Water Emulsion Systems

Sodium and fat reduction in the diet are key factors in the nutrition management of hypertensive individuals. Several reduced and lower fat foods have higher amounts of sodium than their regular fat counterparts, which contradict sodium and fat reduction goals for hypertensive individuals. The objective of this research was to determine the threshold of sodium in a model reduced and low fat oil-in-water emulsion system analogous to salad dressings, so as to identify a reduction level of sodium that may not compromise consumer acceptability. Thirty panelists used the R-index by rating method to evaluate a model reduced fat emulsion system with 7 sodium concentrations (175, 200, 230, 265, 305, and 350 mg) and a model low fat emulsion system with 6 sodium concentrations (160, 170, 180, 190, and 200 mg). For both emulsion systems, 30 g servings of each concentration were presented to panelists. Panelists received 10 replicates of noise and signal samples for both fat levels. The group sodium threshold for the reduced and low fat emulsions was 241.11 and 183.56 mg, respectively. Results indicate saltiness perception is increased when fat content is decreased, and threshold for sodium in the reduced fat emulsion system is higher than the low fat emulsion system with lower fat content. Study findings show opportunities for sodium reduction in reduced and low fat food emulsion systems, particularly additional reductions of sodium without consumer detection.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

Study results demonstrated sodium difference thresholds for the reduced and low fat emulsions were at levels lower than the mean sodium content found in comparable processed food emulsion systems. Results indicate sodium content can potentially be decreased in reduced and lower fat food emulsion systems without consumer detection. Having insight for where consumers are able to detect a difference in sodium levels within reduced and low fat food systems can contribute to a successful reduction of sodium in reduced and lower fat food systems and benefit individuals requiring reductions of sodium and fat in processed food systems.

The 9-point hedonic scale and hedonic ranking in food science: some reappraisals and alternatives

The 9-point hedonic scale has been used routinely in food science, the same way for 60 years. Now, with advances in technology, data from the scale are being used for more and more complex programs for statistical analysis and modeling. Accordingly, it is worth reconsidering the presentation protocols and the analyses associated with the scale, as well as some alternatives. How the brain generates numbers and the types of numbers it generates has relevance for the choice of measurement protocols. There are alternatives to the generally used serial monadic protocol, which can be more suitable. Traditionally, the 'words' on the 9-point hedonic scale are reassigned as 'numbers', while other '9-point hedonic scales' are purely numerical; the two are not interchangeable. Parametric statistical analysis of scaling data is examined critically and alternatives discussed. The potential of a promising alternative to scaling itself, simple ranking with a hedonic R-Index signal detection analysis, is explored in comparison with the 9-point hedonic scale.