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Studies in cognitive psychology have highlighted a link between perception and action, by revealing the non-conscious influence that a cue can have on thinking and doing. The present study aimed at exploring whether an olfactory food cue could have an impact on food choices.We chose fruity odours as olfactory food cues, in order to examine if this kind of olfactory cue could lead individuals to choose fruit and vegetables. In the first experiment, 58 participants were assigned randomly to either a control or a melon-scent condition. In the melon-scent condition, they were unobtrusively exposed to a melon odorant in a waiting room, while in the control condition the room was non-odorized. Then, they all performed a lexical decision task and a task involving choice from a menu. The results showed that participants in the melon-scent condition answered faster only for the word 'melon' in comparison with other tested words. Moreover, participants in the melon-scent condition were more likely than control participants to choose starters with vegetables, but not main courses or desserts with fruit and vegetables. Seventy participants took part in the second experiment, in which we replicated the same protocol, but using a pear odorant as the cue. The results showed that participants in the pear-scent condition were significantly more likely than those in the control condition to choose desserts with fruits, but not starters or main courses with vegetables. These results indicate that the non-conscious perception of a fruity odour may activate a 'fruit and vegetables' concept, but also a concept of the context of consumption. Moreover, they support the idea of priming effects 'specific to a food cue'.

This study evaluated the effect of culture on the relationship between psychological dimensions underlying odor perception and odor categorization. In a first experiment, French, Vietnamese and American participants rated several perceptual dimensions of everyday odorants, and sorted these odorants on the basis of their similarity. Results showed that the three groups of participants differed in their perceptual judgments but agreed in categorizing the odors into four consensual groups (floral, sweet, bad, and nature). Three dimensions--pleasantness, edibility, cosmetic acceptability--discriminated these groups in the same way in the three countries. In a second experiment, the participants sorted only fruit and flower odors to evaluate whether a consensus emerges at a finer level. Results showed that French and American participants clearly separated fruit from flower odors whereas this separation was nonexistent for Vietnamese participants. This difference could arise from cultural differences in odor functions.

Current research in psychology suggests that unconscious processes influence a significant proportion of choices and decisions. To study the impact of a non-attentively perceived odour on food choices, we used a priming paradigm. We had previously shown that non-attentively perceived fruity odours could impact food choice intentions (on a menu card), guiding participants toward items containing more fruit and/or vegetables. The present study was designed to extend these findings, in a real-life consumption setting. One hundred and fifteen participants took part in this study, and were assigned randomly to either a control or a scented condition. On arrival in the laboratory, they were seated in a waiting room. For the scented condition, they were unobtrusively exposed to a pear odour, while under the control condition the waiting room was non-odorised. Following this waiting period, all participants moved into a non-odorised test room where they were asked to choose, from dishes served buffet-style, the starter, main course and dessert that they would actually eat for lunch. The results showed that participants subjected to the scented condition chose to consume the 'fruity' dessert (compote) more frequently than those who had waited under the control condition, who chose more frequently the dessert without fruit (brownie). In line with the findings of our previous study, these results confirm the idea of priming effects 'specific to the food cue'. To conclude, a non-attentively perceived fruity odour was shown to influence actual food choices, guiding individuals towards more fruity desserts. The involvement of implicit processes in food choices should be taken into account in guidelines and strategies designed to promote healthy eating.

Within the European food market, traditional food products (TFP) represent a growing segment. Nonetheless, European consumers' definition and perception of TFP have not been thoroughly addressed thus far. The specific aim of this study was to provide an all-embracing consumer definition of the concept of TFP that is comfortable for the largest possible majority of European food consumers. Cross-sectional survey data were collected from representative consumer samples from Belgium, France, Italy, Norway, Poland, and Spain in November 2007, yielding a total sample of 4,828 participants. The study elaborates on country-specific peculiarities and identifies consumer segments that differ in the emphasis they place in the conceptualization of TFP. The following definition emerged, A traditional food product is a product frequently consumed or associated to specific celebrations and/or seasons, transmitted from one generation to another, made in a specific way according to gastronomic heritage, naturally processed, and distinguished and known because of its sensory properties and associated to a certain local area, region or country. Cross-European homogeneity was found in the elements to include in the definition, across and within-country heterogeneity existed regarding the specific emphasis of particular elements. Four consumer segments were distinguished by whom TFP are predominantly defined as multiconcept, usual/familiar, authentic/typical, and inherited. The first segment displayed a very broad conceptualization, without a clear differentiation. For the latter three segments, particular elements dominated their conceptualization. Product positioning, marketing, and communication challenges for TFP facing these consumer segments are discussed. [EconLit citations: D12; M39; Q13]. r

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International audienceIn humans, oral food consumption is by far the most important point where food's organoleptic properties can be perceived and can elicit sensory pleasure. It is also the ultimate stage of the food supply chain and the beginning of the food disintegration and digestion process. However, in regard to the influence of ageing on food oral processing, this topic has been mainly investigating through mastication, whereas salivation remains largely unexplored. The present experiment aimed at studying the impact of normal ageing on salivary flow taking into account the dental status and the number of drugs taken by the elderly people. This was achieved by comparing resting and stimulated salivary flows of young versus healthy elderly adults (i.e., autonomous elderly people without acute pathology). Ninety-three young adults (22-55 years old) and 84 elderly people (70-92 years old) underwent a measurement of resting and stimulated salivary flows and an oral examination (teeth counting; functional unit counting i.e., counting occluding tooth pairs). The present study showed an average 38.5% reduction of resting salivary flow and 38.0% reduction of stimulated salivary flow in healthy elderly people compared to young adults. This reduction was observed independently of the dental status and drug intake: elderly people presented reduced salivary flow even if they did not take any drugs or if their dental status was similar to the one of the young adults. The results also highlight a large inter-individual variability both in young and elderly adults.PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS During oral food consumption, saliva plays a key role in the acceptance of food and beverage by modulating the perception of texture, taste and aroma, as well as providing eating comfort by assisting the food breakdown process into a bolus that can be safely swallowed. However, in regard to the influence of ageing on food oral processing, the present results demonstrate a reduced salivary flow in healthy elderly people. Consequently, there is a need for developing foods tailored to the salivary capacities of elderly people aside from the efforts put into the development of foods tailored to the mastication and swallowing abilities of this population. In fact, in the context of an ageing population, the development of products meeting an elderly person's functional capacities becomes a major challenge for the food industry as well as for society