THE INFLUENCE OF ORGANOLEPTIC ANALYSIS ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF NOVEL FOODS
Welcome back to the Amerex Blog! In this post we will talk about the influence of organoleptic analysis in the development of a new food. The organoleptic control of a food is established through qualitative assessments of a sample by experts through the senses of sight, smell, taste and touch. This seems to be a very subjective concept, but it is carried out through quantitative and very rigorous methods that ensure high quality results that can be very relevant for the food industry.
The objective of an organoleptic analysis is to determine how consumers will respond to a new product before its launch, in order to have the possibility of improving and changing it in case its quality is not sufficient to make it a successful launch.
Why should food companies be concerned about organoleptic control?
Manufacturers from the food sector are constantly working on the R&D of their products to meet the demands of consumers. These consumers are continuously evolving and requiring new products (different from those existing) and having different needs that are increasingly oriented towards healthy and clean products. However, the latest statistics tell us that not even 25% of the foods developed by these companies succeed in entering the market.
Therefore, they should use organoleptic analysis to predict the success or not of the launch of a new food or beverage on the market. This method enables the use of expert sensory evaluation to understand the consumer’s perception of a product. It also allows to adapt the product to said consumers and to predict its success before the final launch.
Not only R&D but every department of a food manufacturing company (especially manufacturing, marketing and sales) must be aligned to develop and launch products that meet the demands and expectations of their potential consumers.
What stages must a food go through during its formulation to ensure its organoleptic quality?
There are certain stages in the manufacture of a novel food that allow it to achieve ideal consumer acceptance, and thus ensure that its future performance in the market is positive.
A first stage would include everything related to the organoleptic control of the food. Starting with a screening phase of the organoleptic test to be carried out to determine the quality of the food. In this phase we must choose the most appropriate type of analysis for the food depending on the information we want to gather from it. For example, it is not the same to carry out a sensory evaluation of the organoleptic characteristics to find out if a product is liked, as it is to determine the differences between two formulations and to evaluate these differences. Also, a statistical design will have to be prepared to optimise the tests in order to obtain as much information as possible with as few tastings as possible. And last but not least, the panel of tasters should be selected including expert panel evaluators and/or representative consumers.
The second stage is the actual performance of the sensory test, when the tasters evaluate the different organoleptic characteristics of the food: colour, flavour, smell and texture.
A third stage will be the analysis and interpretation of the results, and will end with the fourth stage of validation and redesign of the product to further adapt its organoleptic characteristics and achieve the final food that will be placed on the supermarket.
As a food manufacturer, what can you do to try to ensure a successful launch of your product?
The truth is that launching a product and making it a hit is difficult, and there is no way to predict exactly how a new product will perform in the supermarket. Nevertheless, there are some recommendations to optimise the sensory evaluation of different samples and increase their chances of success.
You can carry out organoleptic pre-testing with different target population groups for the product you are developing. As part of it, you can focus the conditions of the product so that it completely reflect the result of the analysis that has been carried out.
Other factors such as taking extreme care of the quality of all ingredients that are part of the final food, ensuring good practices and being transparent in the information of these ingredients through labelling and product display help in making the product a hit and not a miss.
Finally, to keep assessing end-customer acceptance through different tools such as satisfaction surveys or other market research.
How can Amerex help you improve the organoleptic qualities of your product?
As we have said before, it should not be forgotten that today’s food and beverage consumers are becoming more demanding and expect certain characteristics in their food that were not so much taken into account until the last few years, such as natural ingredients and additive-free labels.
At Amerex, we manufacture preservation solutions that also help to improve the organoleptic properties of foodstuffs. Not only through starter cultures and their enzymatic activities that give good colour, flavour and aroma in the sausage. Also with our wide range of natural ingredients BIAMEX and SAFEMIX that help to maintain the organoleptic condition of the food during its shelf-life.
Is it possible to create a more homemade product without the use of additives or treatments?
Our company can also help you in the reduction of artificial additives and treatments to obtain a more natural and homemade organoleptic in your final product. For example, in ready-to-eat meals that attempt to imitate the most traditional dishes by removing acidifiers that lower pH and change viscosity and colour. You can see an example here.
We are available to answer your questions about improving the organoleptic quality of your product while maintaining microbiological safety and clean labelling through the use of natural and healthy ingredients. Contact us!
Phone number: +34 91 845 42 14
Nuria Lázaro is the R&D and Quality Manager for Amerex’s technical team. She holds a degree in Biology and a master’s degree in Biotechnology. She brings her experience in food preservation and safety, specializing in legislation and the development of new preservatives and antioxidants.
