Sensory Evaluation Practices examines the principles and practices of sensory evaluation. It describes methods and procedures for the analysis of results from sensory tests; explains the reasons for selecting a particular procedure or test method; and discusses the organization and operation of a testing program, the design of a test facility, and the interpretation of results. Comprised of three parts encompassing nine chapters, this volume begins with an overview of sensory evaluation: what it does; how, where, and for whom; and its origin in physiology and psychology. It then discusses measurement, psychological errors in testing, statistics, test strategy, and experimental design. The reader is also introduced to the discrimination, descriptive, and affective methods of testing, along with the criteria used to select a specific method, procedures for data analysis, and the communication of actionable results. The book concludes by looking at problems where sensory evaluation is applicable, including correlation of instrumental and sensory data, measurement of perceived efficacy, storage testing, and product optimization. This book is a valuable resource for sensory professionals, product development and production specialists, research directors, technical managers, and professionals involved in marketing, marketing research, and advertising.

The field of sensory evaluation has matured in the last half century to be come a recognized discipline in the food and consumer sciences and an important part of the foods and consumer products industries. Sensory pro fessionals enjoy widespread recognition for the important services they provide in new product development, basic research, ingredient and process modification, cost reduction, quality maintenance, and product op timization. These services enhance the informational support for manage ment decisions, lowering the risk that accompanies the decision-making process. From the consumers' perspective, a sensory testing program in a food or consumer products company helps ensure that products reach the market with not only good concepts but also with desirable sensory attrib utes that meet their expectations. Sensory professionals have advanced weil beyond the stage when they were simply called on to execute "taste" tests and to provide statistical summaries of results. They are now frequently asked to partleipale in the decision process itself, to draw reasoned conclusions based on data, and to make recommendations. They arealso expected tobe weil versed in an in creasingly sophisticated battery of test methods and statistical procedures, including multivariate analyses. As always, sensory professionals also need to understand people, for people are the measuring instruments that provide the basic sensory data. People are notoriously variable and diffi cult to calibrate, presenting the sensory specialist with many additional XV :xvi PREFACE measurement problems that are not present in instrumental methods.

The ?eld of sensory science has grown exponentially since the publication of the p- vious version of this work. Fifteen years ago the journal Food Quality and Preference was fairly new. Now it holds an eminent position as a venue for research on sensory test methods (among many other topics). Hundreds of articles relevant to sensory testing have appeared in that and in other journals such as the Journal of Sensory Studies. Knowledge of the intricate cellular processes in chemoreception, as well as their genetic basis, has undergone nothing less than a revolution, culminating in the award of the Nobel Prize to Buck and Axel in 2004 for their discovery of the olfactory receptor gene super family. Advances in statistical methodology have accelerated as well. Sensometrics meetings are now vigorous and well-attended annual events. Ideas like Thurstonian modeling were not widely embraced 15 years ago, but now seem to be part of the everyday thought process of many sensory scientists. And yet, some things stay the same. Sensory testing will always involve human participants. Humans are tough measuring instruments to work with. They come with varying degrees of acumen, training, experiences, differing genetic equipment, sensory capabilities, and of course, different preferences. Human foibles and their associated error variance will continue to place a limitation on sensory tests and actionable results. Reducing, controlling, partitioning, and explaining error variance are all at the heart of good test methods and practices.

Basic Sensory Methods for Food Evaluation

Producing products of reliable quality is vitally important to the food and beverage industry. In particular, companies often fail to ensure that the sensory quality of their products remains consistent, leading to the sale of goods which fail to meet the desired specifications or are rejected by the consumer. This book is a practical guide for all those tasked with using sensory analysis for quality control (QC) of food and beverages. Chapters in part one cover the key aspects to consider when designing a sensory QC program. The second part of the book focuses on methods for sensory QC and statistical data analysis. Establishing product sensory specifications and combining instrumental and sensory methods are also covered. The final part of the book reviews the use of sensory QC programs in the food and beverage industry. Chapters on sensory QC for taint prevention and the application of sensory techniques for shelf-life assessment are followed by contributions reviewing sensory QC programs for different products, including ready meals, wine and fish. A chapter on sensory QC of products such as textiles, cosmetics and cars completes the volume. Sensory analysis for food and beverage quality control is an essential reference for anyone setting up or operating a sensory QC program, or researching sensory QC. - Highlights key aspects to consider when designing a quality control program including sensory targets and proficiency testing - Examines methods for sensory quality control and statistical data analysis - Reviews the use of sensory quality control programs in the food and beverage industry featuring ready meals, wine and fish

Sensory analysis is an important tool in new product development. There has recently been significant development in the methods used to capture sensory perception of a product. Rapid Sensory Profiling Techniques provides a comprehensive review of rapid methods for sensory analysis that can be used as alternatives or complementary to conventional descriptive methods. Part one looks at the evolution of sensory perception capture methods. Part two focuses on rapid methods used to capture sensory perception, and part three covers their applications in new product development and consumer research. Finally, part four explores the applications of rapid methods in testing specific populations.

This book is a practical guide to sensory evaluation methods and techniques in the food, cosmetic and household product industries. It explains the suitability of different testing methods for different situations and offers step-by-step instructions on how to perform the various types of tests. Covering a broad range of food and non-food product applications, the book is designed to be used as a practical reference in the testing environment; a training manual for new recruits into sensory science, and a course book for students undertaking industrial training or academic study.

Sensory analysis is not new to the food industry, but its application as a basic tool in food product development and quality control has not been given the recognition and acceptance it deserves. This, we believe, is largely due to the lack of understanding about what sensory analysis can offer in product research, development and marketing, and a fear that the discipline is 'too scientific' to be practical. To some extent, sensory scientists have perpetuated this fear with a failure to recognize the constraints of industry in implementing sensory testing procedures. These guidelines are an attempt to redress the balance. Of course, product 'tasting' is carried out in every food company: it may be the morning tasting session by the managing director, competitor comparisons by the marketeers, tasting by a product 'expert' giving a quality opinion, comparison of new recipes from the product development kitchen, or on-line checking during pro duction. Most relevant, though, is that the people respon sible for the tasting session should know why the work is being done, and fully realize that if it is not done well, then the results and conclusions drawn, and their implications, are likely to be misleading. If, through the production of these guidelines, we have influenced some people suffi ciently for them to re-evaluate what they are doing, and why, we believe our efforts have been worthwhile.

A comprehensive review of the techniques and applications of descriptive analysis Sensory evaluation is a scientific discipline used to evoke, measure, analyse and interpret responses to products perceived through the senses of sight, smell, touch, taste and hearing. It is used to reveal insights into the ways in which sensory properties drive consumer acceptance and behaviour, and to design products that best deliver what the consumer wants. Descriptive analysis is one of the most sophisticated, flexible and widely used tools in the field of sensory analysis. It enables objective description of the nature and magnitude of sensory characteristics for use in consumer-driven product design, manufacture and communication. Descriptive Analysis in Sensory Evaluation provides a comprehensive overview of a wide range of traditional and recently-developed descriptive techniques, including history, theory, practical considerations, statistical analysis, applications, case studies and future directions. This important reference, written by academic and industrial sensory scientist, traces the evolution of descriptive analysis, and addresses general considerations, including panel set-up, training, monitoring and performance; psychological factors relevant to assessment; and statistical analysis. Descriptive Analysis in Sensory Evaluation is a valuable resource for sensory professionals working in academia and industry, including sensory scientists, practitioners, trainers and students, and industry-based researchers in quality assurance, research and development, and marketing.