Pilot Study to Reduce Added Salt on a University Canteen through the Use of an Innovative Dosage Equipment

Background: This study aims to demonstrate the practical application of an innovative easy-to-use equipment to dosage cooking salt, and evaluate the effectiveness in reducing 30% of the added salt in meals and the impact on consumer’s satisfaction and food waste. Methods: Two canteens from one public university where randomized in one control arm and one intervention arm. The first step was to evaluate the salt added to food through atomic emission spectrophotometry in both canteens, and the second step was to perform gradual reductions of up to 30% of cooking salt in the intervention canteen using the Salt Control-C (SC-C) equipment. Consumer acceptability was assessed through satisfaction questionnaires and food waste was evaluated by weighing. Results: The intervention canteen achieved to a reduction of more than 30% of added salt in soup (−34.3% per 100 g), fish dish (−41.1% per 100 g) and meat dish (−48.0% per 100 g), except for the vegetarian dish (6.1% per 100 g). There was no decrease in consumer satisfaction, with a significant satisfaction increase of 15.7% (p = 0.044) regarding the flavor of the main dish. Also, no significant differences were found in food waste. Conclusions: SC-C seems to be effective in reducing 30% of added salt levels in canteen meals, and may be a good strategy to control and reach adequate levels of added salt in meals served outside-the-home, promoting benefits to the individual’s health.

A STUDY ON PRODUCTION OF BANANA FROZEN YOGHURT AND ASSESSING CONSUMER ACCEPTABILITY

Frozen yogurt is a frozen dairy dessert made with yogurt. It’s known for its frozen texture as a dessert and higher nutritional value in comparison with ice cream. Frozen yogurt is used much like ice cream and served in a wide variety of flavors and styles around the world. The objective of this project was to develop a healthier frozen yoghurt with natural banana flavour, and to evaluate its sensory acceptability. Banana frozen yoghurt was produced with vanilla and chocolate flavors. The sensory acceptability of products was tested at Department of Veterinary Public health and Pharmacology (VPHP) by conducting two sensory panels. According to the results, in sensory analysis both vanilla and chocolate flavored products were equally accepted. Further studies need to be carried out to improve the product with a higher probiotic value and better texture.

Evaluation of consumer acceptance and nutritional value from opak crackers with the addition of triggerfish (Canthidermis maculata)

Triggerfish (Canthidermis maculata) is one of the fish types which can be used in opak crackers for the additional nutrition. This research aims to determine (1) the consumer acceptability and (2) the nutritional value of the triggerfish opak crackers. The method used in this study is an experimental study using a completely randomized design with two treatments and three repetitions. The experiment using 3 levels of triggerfish addition; 0%, 20%, and 40% respectively. The result of experiments that have been conducted on 30 respondents who are the students at Faculty of Teacher Training and Education by using 5 levels of hedonic scale shows that the opak crackers with the addition of triggerfish is the most preferable and the experiment proves that the nutritional level increased as well. The result of the acceptance showed that almost all consumers like opak Crackers in the (AI) treatment with the addition of 20% triggerfish because it had triggerfish characteristics such as aroma, crunchy texture, and the taste. However, when it comes for the color, respondents preferred the A0 formula, which is the crackers without the addition of triggerfish. The proximate test result reveals that the triggerfish opak crackers contains 83.32% carbohydrate, 8.42% protein, 1.99% fat, 0.47% ash, and 3% water.

The Effect of Cooking Method and Cooked Color on Consumer Acceptability of Boneless Pork Chops

The objective was to determine the effects of sous-vide cooking and degree of doneness on consumer eating experience of pork chops when cooked color was expected to differ. The hypothesis was consumers would prefer a cooked brown color and would rate grilled chops more acceptable than sous-vide chops. Chops were cooked to 63 °C or 71 °C using either an open-hearth grill or a sous-vide device. Participants evaluated four samples for tenderness, juiciness, flavor, and overall acceptability. Participants rated a greater percentage of chops cooked sous-vide at 63 °C as tender (82.82%), juicy (55.83%) and acceptable (60.34%) compared with all other cooking method and degree of doneness combinations. Participants rated a greater percentage of sous-vide chops as tender and acceptable compared to grilled chops. Participants rated a greater percentage of chops cooked to 63 °Cas tender, juicy, flavorful, and acceptable when compared to 71 °C. Even when participants could visualize cooked color, they preferred chops cooked to 63 °C compared with chops cooked to 71 °C. Overall, participants preferred chops cooked to 63 °C compared to 71 °C regardless of the cooking method and preferred chops cooked to 63 °C using the sous-vide cooking method the most among all treatments.

Effect of Incorporation of Oats and Malted Barley Flours on the Quality of Cookies

The study aimed to determine the potential of oats and malted barley flours incorporation on cookie making. D-optimal mixture design was employed for formulating the recipe of cookies. Seven different formulations of recipe containing oats flour: malted barley flour: wheat flour in the ratio of 20:25:55, 15:30:55, 13:32:55, 10:35:55, 7:38:55, 5:40:55 and 100:0:0 was prepared. The prepared cookies were subjected to sensory evaluation for consumer acceptability and the data obtained were statistically analyzed using two-way ANOVA (no blocking) at a 5% level of significance. From the mean sensory scores, the formulation 10:35:55 was selected as the optimized formulation and subjected to proximate analysis. The optimized cookies were significantly (p<0.05) superior in the case of protein (7.50%), fat (22.93%), fiber (2.90%), and ash content (0.97%) to wheat cookies (6.43%, 18.83% 0.83% and 0.41% respectively) as seen higher in oats and malted barley flours than wheat flour. The calcium content was found to be significantly (p<0.05) higher in optimized cookies (35.3 mg/100g) than wheat cookies (18.40 mg/).

Terpene volatiles mediates the chemical basis of blueberry aroma and consumer acceptability

Among the main features treasured by blueberry consumers, flavor is the most important. Human perception of food flavors can primarily be divided into two main sensory inputs, taste and aroma. Through retronasal olfaction, a group of metabolites called volatile organic compounds (VOCs) emitted from the fruit are able to produce the sensation of aroma, creating the myriad of flavors experienced during our life. In blueberry, breeders have noticed some genotypes with unique floral and sweet flavor notes that, ultimately, enhance human aroma perception. Despite the importance, both the understanding of which chemicals are mediating this variation across phenotypes and the potential impact on consumer acceptability remains largely unknown. In this study we dissected the main components underlying blueberry aroma and associated it with consumer predilections by paring metabolomics with sensory analysis. Our contribution in this study is four-fold: (i) first, based on a representative blueberry germplasm cultivated at the University of Florida, we differentiated genotypes with floral and sweet aromatic notes and confirmed that such unique characteristics are preferred by consumers; (ii) at the chemical level, we showed that a group of eight terpene volatiles constitute the primary metabolic group associated with aroma sensation; (iii) we demonstrated that aromatic genotypes can be classified using information from a group of a few key volatiles; and finally, (iv) we combined pedigree and metabolomic information in a single predictive framework and showed the importance of metabolomic data for flavor-assisted selection. For the blueberry community, our findings open new venues to explore flavor. Broadly, we present an emerging view about flavor and provide a detailed blueprint of how this target could be addressed in fruits and vegetables.