Quiz 1
• Define sensory evaluation
Sensory evaluation
A scientific discipline used to evoke, measure, analyse and
interpret
reactions to those characteristics of foods and materials as
they are perceived by the senses of
sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing.
The sensory properties of foods are related to three
major attributes:
Appearance - colour, size, shape;
Flavour - odour, taste;
Texture - mouth feel, viscosity and hearing.
Objectives:
At the end of this chapter, you will be able to:
Identify the 5 human sense
Sense of vision
Sense of sound
Sense of touch
Sense of smell
Sense of taste
Determine and understand the role and the
involvement of the 5 senses in sensory
evaluation of food.
SENSE OF VISION
SENSE OF VISION
Sight or vision:
Ability of the brain and eye to detect
electromagnetic waves within the visible range
(light) and interpret the image
1. The Sense Organ we use to sense Light is the
EYES. (Figure 1)
2. The EYE is composed of THREE LAYERS:
A. The OUTER Layer consists of the SCLERA
AND CORNEA.
B. The MIDDLE Layer contains the CHOROID,
CILIARY BODY, AND IRIS.
C. The INNER Layer consists of the RETINA.
A stimulus, light, from an external source interacts
with the object and is brought to focus on the retina
of the eye.
The retina is the receptor of vision and contains two
types of cells.
Light incident on these cells causes a photochemical
reaction that generates an electrical impulse which is
transmitted to the brain via the optic nerve.
The appearance of a food item is the first attribute humans tend to perceive
Color perception in sensory evaluation is important and some
concerns are:
o Perception of color is influenced by
background and relative sizes of contrasting
color.
o The texture and gloss of a surface can
also affect perception of color in sensory
testing.
o The eveness of color as opposed to an
uneven or blotchy appearance can affect
sensory perception
Physical form
• physical form that can be subdivided into three parts:
1. Shape - Sliced, diced, pieces whole
- Length of frozen French fries
- Cut of beans
- Extrusions
2. Surface texture - Open dry structure of meat
- Wrinkling of peas
- Wilting of lettuce
3. Visual consistency -Setting of a jelly
- Syrups of different concentrations
- Pastes and purees
THE SENSE OF SOUND
Sense of sound perception
Sound is vibrations propagating through a medium
(e.g. air)
Detection of these vibrations is a mechanical sense
similar to ‘touch’ but much more specialized
The EAR is really TWO Sense Organs in ONE. It not
only detects Sound Waves, it also senses the
Position of the HEAD, whether it is STILL, MOVING
IN A STRAIGHT LINE, OR ROTATING.
The cochlea.
• This structure is a spiral canal covered with
hair cells. This motion agitates the hair cells
which in turn stimulates nearby neurons that
give rise to impulses that travel to the brain.
This results is the brains interpretation and
thus you can hear(Marieb, E.N.)
Concerns with Sensory Evaluation:
Positive aspects:
• Snap, crackle and pop;
• Fizz of champagne or beer;
• Crispiness of lettuce or celery; and
• Tapping a melon for quality.
Negative aspects:
• noisy environment may distract tasters or
mask product sounds.
SENSE OF TOUCH
• Perception=touch, feel, texture, viscosity
• Texture usually relates to solid food while
viscosity relates to homogeneous liquid foods
and consistency relates to non-homogeneous
liquid foods.
THE SENSE OF TOUCH
• YOUR LARGEST SENSE ORGAN IS YOUR SKIN.
• MECHANORECEPTORS located throughout the Skin make it
possible to sense touch, pressure, and tension.
• In humans, the receptors for touch are concentrated in the
face, tongue, and fingertips.
• Two Types respond to Heat or Cold - THERMORECEPTORS;
• Two others respond to TOUCH - MECHANORECEPTORS;
• one Type responds to TISSUE DAMAGE WHICH CAUSES
PAIN - PAIN RECEPTORS.
The MOST TOUCH-Sensitive areas are the FINGERS, TOES, AND LIPS.
Finger feel
Firmness/Softness indicates the eating quality of
some food products:
Ripeness level of fruit such as avocado and
mango;
Crumb texture of bread;
Firmness of cheese; and
Spreadability of butter or spread.
Mouth feel
Liquids
• Viscosity - thin to viscous, e.g. milk, cream.
• Consistency - thin to thick, e.g. fruit yoghurts.
Solids
• Classification of textural characteristics - assessed
mainly by chewing.
Textural Terminology Mechanical Characteristics
Hardness Soft, firm, hard, e.g. fruit
ripeness, cheese maturity.
Brittleness Crumbly, crunchy, Brittle,
e.g. muesli bars and biscuits
Chewiness Tender, chewy, tough, e.g.
meat.
Grittiness
Gritty, grainy, coarse, e.g.
stone cells in fruit, "sand" in
ice-cream.
Textural Terminology Mechanical Characteristics
Fibrousness Fibrous, cellular, e.g.
string/fibre in vegetables.
Moistness Dry, moist, wet, e.g. cracker
biscuit, cheeses, water
melon.
Oily, greasy, fatty, e.g.
Oiliness/Greasiness
french fries, chips.
tuna steak
High-quality tuna steaks typically have a
uniform color and texture, a translucent or
glassy appearance and are firm and moist.
biscuit
chocolate
prawns
tomatoes