Sensory Analysis

Sensory analysis, also known as sensory evaluation or organoleptic evaluation, is a scientific method that uses human to evaluate the properties of food products. The sensory analysis examines the properties (texture, flavour, taste, appearance, smell, etc.) of a product or food through the senses (sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing).  

Sensory analysis bridges the gap between product formulation and consumer satisfaction. It ensures that products meet consumer expectations while maintaining consistent quality, contributing to brand loyalty and market success. One can use sensory analysis for quality control, shelf-life determination, estimating product launch readiness, evaluating product success, flavour profiling, and finding the factors that drive customer preferences. You can use it to make critical decisions concerning raw materials, components, additives, storage and packing conditions, expiration or “best by” dates, and product optimization. There are many sensory analysis tests like, Discrimination test, Descriptive test, Affective test, etc. but Hedonic rating scale (type of affective test) is the most common and easy test which is used. 

The hedonic scale can be used to determine the degree to which one or more things are acceptable. This is a categorical scale with an odd number of categories (five to nine), ranging from “dislike highly” to “like extremely.” There is a neutral middle (neither like nor dislike). Based on their responses, customers rank the product on a scale. Below is the Hedonic score card: 

Important points to remember while performing sensory analysis:

• Conduct evaluations in a controlled environment free from strong odours, distractions, and excessive noise also avoid any discussion in between.

• Randomize the order of sample presentation to avoid order bias while performing the sensory test. 

• Provide palate cleansers like water or unsalted crackers to neutralize taste sensations between samples.

• Record evaluations systematically with scores, comments, and any relevant observations.