Skip to main content
ARS Home » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #86231
Title: RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SENSORY AND INSTRUMENTAL TEXTURE PROFILE ATTRIBUTES

Author
item MEULLENET, JEAN - UGA DEPT FOOD SCI & TECH
item LYON, BRENDA
item CARPENTER, JOHN - UGA DEPT FOOD SCI & TECH
item LYON, CLYDE

Submitted to: Journal of Sensory Studies
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/28/1997
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Food texture quality can be measured by both sensory evaluation techniques and instrumental measurements. A goal of food technologists is to explain the relationships between the instrumental measurement and sensory perception in order to predict consumer responses or to evaluate quality control methods. The simplest relationship sought is the linear correlation. In this study, the primary textural characteristics of hardness, cohesiveness, springiness, and chewiness were evaluated simultaneously by sensory and instrumental texture profile analysis in foods representing the texture spectrum. High linear correlations were noted between corresponding instrumental parameters and sensory scores for hardness and springiness. However, cohesiveness and chewiness measurements were sometimes interdependent with the product's springiness. The study will help food rheologists find better instrumental methods to measure the sensory perceptions of texture.

Technical Abstract: Texture relationships were studied using both sensory and instrumental texture profile analysis (TPA) techniques to evaluate twenty-one food samples from a wide variety of foods. High linear correlations were found between sensory and instrumental TPA parameters for hardness (r=0.76) and springiness (r=0.83). No significant correlations were found between sensory and instrumental TPA parameters for cohesiveness and chewiness. Logarithmic transformations of data improved correlations between sensory attributes and their instrumental corollaries. The correlation between sensory hardness and the logarithm of instrumental hardness was improved to r=0.96. The correlation between the logarithm of both sensory and instrumental springiness was improved to r=0.86. The correlation between the logarithms of both sensory and instrumental chewiness was improved to r=0.54, which was significant at P<0.05.