Using consumers to understand key sensory attributes of flavoured milk and drivers of liking for the development of low sugar product.

Consumer directed product development

Using consumers to understand key sensory attributes of flavoured milk and drivers of liking for the development of low sugar product.

 

Overview

The World Health Organization has identified the addition of sugar to processed foods and beverages as a health concern. Therefore, reducing added sugar in products would help consumers decrease the calorie intake and manage their health concerns in the long run.

 

Approach

Natural sweeteners as sugar replacers

Natural non-nutritive sweeteners (NNSs) like Stevia and Monk fruit have greater potential as sugar replacers. As no single sugar has a sensory profile close to sucrose, therefore, use of two or more sweeteners could be an option to partially reduce the sugar in products. In order to develop a low sugar product with optimum sensory attributes, a powerful tool i.e. Response Surface Methodology (RSM) could be employed for optimizing the level of sweeteners taking the sensory attributes into consideration.

Response Surface Methodology (RSM) and Consumer panel

n=120 consumers were recruited for the tasting of flavoured milk and were asked to rate liking for different sensory attributes e.g. overall liking, appearance, aroma, sweetness, mouthfeel and aftertaste.

Optimization of the sweeteners was performed based on their responses for different sensory attributes for the maximum liking of the product.


Results

Response surface methodology was used for quadratic modelling of the concentrations of the natural sweeteners.

Using the 3D contour plot, the optimum concentration of the sweeteners were identified for the maximum liking of the product with replaced sugar.

Further, the liking of the products were compared to the commercial reference sample as a benchmark.

Outcome

It is possible to achieve a 50% of added sugar reduction in chocolate milk using stevia and monk fruit compounds

The use of two sweeteners provide synergistic effects on sensory attributes

The optimum sensory response is comparable to the control sample with full sugar

 

Significance

The combined use of natural non-nutritive sweeteners could be used to partially reduce sugar in food products which will benefit the health of the population significantly.

 

 

Product development publication highlights

Acute effect of sorghum flour-containing pasta on plasma total polyphenols, antioxidant capacity and oxidative stress markers in healthy subjects: a randomised controlled trial

I Khan, A Yousif, S Johnson, S Gamlath
(2015), Vol. 34, pp. 415-421, Clinical nutrition, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1

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Consumer acceptability and antioxidant potential of probiotic-yogurt with spices

V Illupapalayam, S Smith, S Gamlath
(2014), Vol. 55, pp. 255-262, LWT – Food Science and Technology, C1

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Effect of sorghum flour addition on in vitro starch digestibility, cooking quality and consumer acceptability of durum wheat pasta

I Khan, A Yousif, S Johnston, S Gamlath
(2014), Vol. 79, pp. 1560-1567, Journal of food science, Hoboken, NJ, C1

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Effect of sorghum flour addition on resistant starch content, phenolic profile and antioxidant capacity of durum wheat pasta

I Khan, A Yousif, S Johnson, S Gamlath, (2013), Vol. 54, pp. 578-586, Food research international, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1

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Effect of sorghum flour addition on resistant starch content, phenolic profile and antioxidant capacity of durum wheat pasta

I Khan, A Yousif, S Johnson, S Gamlath
(2013), Vol. 54, pp. 578-586, Food research international, Amsterdam, The Netherlands, C1

Visit Publication