Food Quality and Preference最新文献

Temporal Dominance of Sensations (TDS) and Temporal Check-All-That-Apply (TCATA) make it possible to capture temporal changes in the perception of sensory attributes within a product. However, temporal measurements bring new sources of uncontrolled variability that can make them imprecise, particularly with consumer panels. This article aims to demonstrate the importance of considering this imprecision when interpreting temporal data. First, the levels of imprecision due to non-repeatability or disagreement were assessed. The precision of TDS and TCATA was shown to be low, mainly due to disagreement caused by high heterogeneity in total durations of perception. Then, a new framework of analysis has been introduced. It allowed testing of differences in the median times of selection or unselection of attributes. A new representation of TDS and TCATA data has been proposed to visualize and objectify uncertainty in periods of perception. The conclusions obtained with the new framework were compared to those obtained with the usual analyses based on the evolution of citation rates over time. It was shown that the interpretation of TDS/TCATA curves and difference curves can be tricky without guidelines regarding the minimum size of differences that can be considered significant and interpretable. Finally, it was shown that the temporal resolution of the methods was about 10% of the total duration of the perception. These findings question the ability of TDS and TCATA to capture subtle temporal differences. Therefore, recommendations were made for interpreting temporal data in a way that robust conclusions can be drawn.

Sensory evaluation is used to identify how humans perceive and respond to stimuli. However, current judgment criteria are limited to the number of ordinal categories. These ordinal categories do not account for variations within them, making it hard to grasp the panelist's detailed preferences fully. This study aimed to develop a hierarchical ranking test to reveal human response. The quality of 100 cherry tomato images was ranked using a joint paired comparison and ranking test. One hundred images of cherry tomatoes with visible damage were investigated for sensory evaluation. Twelve untrained panelists evaluated the quality of the cherry tomato images, ranking them from 1st to 100th. As a result, the Kendall rank correlation coefficient, which evaluates the agreement of ranking among panelists, was 0.84, suggesting that the evaluation of the quality of cherry tomatoes generally showed the same trend among 12 panelists. For all 12 panelists, the proportion of the wounded area on the tomato had a more significant impact on the quality ranking than the wound area size. In addition, the quality ranking of cherry tomatoes was predicted by fine-tuning the convolutional neural network model VGG-19 with a moderately high coefficient of determination of 0.82. Our new hierarchical ranking test would facilitate detailed human evaluations, upon which ranking predictions would be made.

Jellyfish consumption is popular in Asia but neglected in other continents, where their abundance could represent a sustainable food source. This study explored the potential of jellyfish as food in the Latin American population. Through an online survey that included questions about socio-demographics, personality traits, and acceptance of jellyfish as food, responses by 6,597 Latin Americans (55.9 % females; 18–90 years old) in nine countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay) were collected. Jellyfish consumption acceptance (JCA) was positively correlated with age, educational level, and income, and negatively correlated with food neophobia and sensitivity to disgust. Comparing the nine countries, significant differences were identified. The highest levels of JCA were found among Argentinians and Peruvians, while the lowest values were observed among Ecuadorians and Salvadorians. Based on the modality of consumption (visible appearance, ingredient role, cooking method, carrier flavour of the recipe), four groups of countries with similar acceptance were observed: 1) Peru, Argentina, Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil; 2) El Salvador; 3) Chile and Uruguay; and 4) Ecuador. Moreover, differences in food pairing choices were highlighted among countries of the Northern hemisphere (El Salvador, Mexico, and Colombia), middle latitude (Ecuador, Peru, and Brazil) and the southernmost (Uruguay, Argentina, and Chile). In conclusion, this research contributes to the understanding of jellyfish as a sustainable food source in Latin America and provides useful insights for future market development and the adoption of tailored approaches to maximise the use and consumption of jellyfish across the region.

To get an understanding of drivers of animal-sourced protein consumption, we explored laypeople’s affective images of animal-sourced food. A national representative sample of the Norwegian population (N = 783) provided free associations to six food products originating either from livestock, capture fishery, aquaculture, or hunting. Subsequently, participants evaluated their own free associations as either positive, negative, or neutral. We found that people show different associative patterns for animal-sourced food from land than from sea. Livestock and hunting are mostly related to traditions and food, whereas capture fishery relates to production, consequences, and evaluations. People reported to have little knowledge about food products in the aquaculture category. Livestock was the most positively evaluated category, followed by hunting and capture fishery; aquaculture elicited the most negative associations. The current findings suggest a need to consider different strategies to encourage consumption of specific categories of food products.

This study delves into the multi-faceted process of consumer acceptance of innovative food products, such as insect-fed farmed fish. This is a food product that introduces new, though potentially conflicting, intangible attributes aligning with circularity and sustainability but also evoking negative emotions, such as disgust or neophobia. Drawing from two distinct studies on young and older Italian consumers, we employ an intergenerational lens to explore individual psychometric characteristics, socio-demographic variables, and nudging effects in shaping the acceptance process. We apply the Campbell Paradigm, integrating three acceptance items into well-established scales measuring attitudes towards the environment and nature.

Our results reveal that environmental protection inclination, rather than a connectedness to nature, primarily drives acceptance. Notably, young consumers exhibit a more facile acceptance process, indicating lower behavioral costs at each stage. Sociodemographic variables, particularly gender, exert varied influences on acceptance stages, with older women displaying greater hesitancy in adopting new dietary practices. Additionally, exploring the impact of nudges, we find that information significantly influences acceptance, while visual priming does not. Interestingly, the effectiveness of information varies between generations, indicating different reactions and responses.

The findings propose strategies for policymakers and marketers to highlight the positive attributes of insects-fed farmed fish, emphasizing sustainability and addressing consumer disgust concerns. Introducing insects as feed in various farming practices may enhance familiarity with this alternative protein source, potentially reducing disgust and fostering widespread acceptance.

The no and low alcohol (NOLO) drinks industry is undergoing a significant transformation Currently the nolo beer market is worth $9.5billion globally and is predicted to grow 7.5 % a year until 2026 (Lawton, 2022). Our review seeks to answer research questions relating to understanding the current state of scholarly research on NOLO consumption and areas for future research. Using the three elements of the Mojet model: Product factors, Individual factors, and Environmental factors we analyse research highlighted through a systematic literature review using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses framework (PRISMA) process. 60 articles published between 1990 and 2023 were selected from three comprehensive databases (Scopus, Web of Science, EBSCO) and subjected to analysis. Only papers focused on NOLO and consumers were included with papers not peer reviewed or in English excluded. The review reveals that while research has examined all Mojet areas the results are often contradictory and extensive further research is needed to fully understand the area of NOLO consumer behaviour. Additionally, the extant research is theoretically weak, draws predominantly on quantitative data and is geographically narrow focusing principally on studies in the Global North. We complete our review by proposing a future research agenda, dedicated to a comprehensive understanding of NOLO consumers, focusing on all Mojet factors fully and with more geographically, methodologically, and theoretically diverse projects.

In this paper, we develop the Multilevel Food Ethnocentrism (MFE) construct, broadening the ethnocentrism concept to include different group levels while at the same time concentrating on ethnocentrism with regard to food choices. This approach is grounded in Social Identity and Self-categorization theories. We develop a scale measuring multilevel food ethnocentrism, following the steps outlined previously in the marketing and consumer psychology literature.. In the first stage, we generated items and analyzed them by an exploratory factor analysis (EFA) with data from Denmark and Mexico. In the second phase of our study, we refined the scale and validated it through various tests The scale exhibits strong internal consistency and measurement invariance, indicating its stability and applicability across diverse cultural contexts. Furthermore, the study explores the nomological validity of MFE, revealing its associations with constructs such as Consumer Ethnocentrism, collectivism, local and global identity, locavorism, ethnic identity, and patriotism. The findings provide insights into the relationships between food ethnocentrism and related constructs, shedding light on the factors influencing consumers' preferences for local foods. Our findings exhibited consistency between the two countries examined. Particularly noteworthy was the impact of our city/local dimension on preferences for local food products. The MFE instrument provides a precise means of gauging consumer ethnocentric attitudes toward food products and their origins.

Intuitive eating is an adaptive eating style referring to a set of eating behaviors characterized by reliance on internal hunger and satiety cues rather than situational and emotional cues. It has four dimensions: Unconditional Permission to Eat, Eating for Physical rather than Emotional Reasons, Reliance on Hunger and Satiety Cues, and Body-Food Choice Congruence. Two studies explored the psychometric characteristics of a new Italian version of the Intuitive Eating Scale-2 (IES-2) among university students. Study 1 (n = 462; M_age = 22.36, SD = 2.10; 58.7 % females) evaluated the four-factor structure via CFA, resulting, with post-hoc modifications, in a 15-item version. Measurement invariance across gender, gender differences, and relationships with BMI were tested. Study 2 (n = 359; M_age = 20.35, SD = 1.77; 61.8 % females) verified the construct validity of the 15-item scale and explored criterion validity by examining the correlations with self-esteem, well-being, emotional, external, and restrained eating styles. Furthermore, the relationship between intuitive eating and food intake was explored. Overall results confirmed the four-factor structure, measurement invariance across gender, and criterion validity. The scale showed good psychometric properties in university students. Intuitive eating was associated with a healthier psychological status and lower risk of high-weight status, but it was not consistently associated with all markers of a healthy diet.

Limited knowledge exists concerning Aotearoa New Zealand (A-NZ) flexitarians and their respective motivators and barriers towards consumption of novel plant-based products (PBPs) heralded as aids for dietary meat reduction. This study aimed to determine if A-NZ flexitarians, who have tried novel PBPs, can be segmented based on different motivators and barriers to meat reduction and PBP consumption, if the consumer profile of the different segments varies according to identified gender, generation group, neophobia and meat and PBP consumption frequency. It also aimed to identify sensory characteristics novel PBPs need to possess to be attractive to A-NZ flexitarians and if these vary across segments. PBP-consuming flexitarians (n = 584), stratified according to age (Millennial/Gen X), identified gender and meat consumption frequency, completed an online survey regarding a) their level of agreement regarding statements related to factors driving PBP consumption and flexitarianism in general, and b) their satisfaction with the sensory experience of consuming current PBPs. ‘Tastes good’ was the top-rated factor for selecting PBPs for all consumers, but most were dissatisfied with the sensory characteristics of current PBPs. K-means cluster analysis identified three flexitarian segments based on similarities and differences in key motivations and barriers to consume PBPs. Attitudes and behaviours related to nutrition/health, and social status attained from eating both PBPs and meat products, accounted for most variation across the respondents. Overall, higher food neophobia was associated with higher PBP consumption, suggesting that neophobia itself is not necessarily a barrier to PBP consumption in A-NZ flexitarians. Improving the sensory profiles of PBPs whilst delivering nutritional requirements presented as key considerations for future product development and research. This research highlights the importance of understanding the distinct values, attitudes and behaviours of different flexitarian groups as opposed to generalised research aimed at flexitarians per se.