Sensory Characterization and Acceptability of a New Lulo (Solanum quitoense Lam.) Powder-Based Soluble Beverage Using Rapid Evaluation Techniques with Consumers

Abstract

Recently, the interest in tropical fruits has increased widely even beyond their production areas, but the perishable nature of these fruits makes their marketing difficult. However, due to its special sensory characteristics and nutritional value, lulo (Solanum quitoense Lam.) is a good candidate for product development to meet this ever-growing demand. Therefore, a lulo-powder-based soluble beverage was prepared according to previously established formulations. Thus, the aim of the present research was to obtain the sensory characterization, study consumers’ overall acceptability, and identify drivers of liking for the new beverage. Eight samples were prepared with lulo juice or pulp + stevia, or a sweetener blend (erythritol + xylitol + stevia). Maltodextrin or inulin, as a drying aid, was added to freeze-dry the samples. The freeze-dried samples were rehydrated for consumption. The sensory characterization of the new beverage was carried out by using CATA questions with consumers (n = 69). The most influential attributes that affected acceptability were identified by using ideal product characterization and hedonic scores of the samples. The beverage formulations with stevia alone had the lowest acceptability. Most sensory differences among samples were found between the visual attributes. The attributes “clean”, “homogeneous”, “fruity” and “citrus” odor, “just-right acidity”, “just-right sweetness”, and “fresh” were necessary to increase global acceptance in the juice-only beverages (Js), whereas “cloudy”, “off-odor”, and “very acidic” negatively impacted acceptance. For products with pulp (Ps), “citrus” and “tropical fruit” odors, “just-right acidity”, “just-right sweetness”, and “fresh” attributes were needed to increase acceptance, while “cloudy” and “chemical/artificial” flavors negatively impacted acceptance. The lulo-powder-based soluble beverage was accepted by consumers; however, there is still potential for the sensory-quality improvement of this product.

Factors affecting consumers’ acceptability of fiber drink products

“…The consumers' acceptability levels of fiber drink samples was measured using 9-point hedonic scale anchored with 1 "dislike extremely" and 9 "like extremely" [18]. The overall liking of the samples was evaluated at the beginning of the test before the CATA evaluation to avoid any bias from sensory characteristics.…”

Sensory characteristics of powdered-fiber drinks using CATA (check-all-that-apply) method

“…There was a total of 28 sensorial attributes (visual, aroma, taste, and texture) and 13 non-sensory attributes (41 attributes in total) evaluated. The CATA attributes were adopted and adjusted based on the previous studies that also evaluates the sensory characterization of a powdered drink product [5,18]. The complete list of CATA attribute is presented in the Table 2.…”

“…fresh, natural, artificial, healthy, nutritious, high in fiber, fruit and vegetable substitute, fruit juices, delicious, nauseated, fullness, easy to stir Based on Dhingra et al[5] and Marín-Arroyo and González-Bonilla[18] …”

Optimizing Sensory Attributes: Exploring the Placement of the Ideal-Product Question in Check-All-That-Apply Methodology

“…In studies that utilize the CATA method incorporating an "ideal" assessment, the query regarding the ideal product typically follows the evaluation of all actual samples [8,16,17,[21][22][23][24]. Ares and Jaeger [15] recommended randomizing the order of attributes within a ballot format, grouping them by modality to reduce the influence of attribute sequence on the sensory characterization of the product.…”