Grand opening, up to 15% off all items. Only 3 days left
  • Product adulteration Is Equal To Murder
  • Adulterated product is not just a problem, it’s a crisis.

Sensory Analysis

Sensory Analysis and Organoleptic Evaluation [OLE] is a scientific discipline that applies principles of experimental design and statistical analysis to the use of human senses [sight, smell, taste, touch & hearing] for the purposes of evaluation of consumer products. The discipline requires panels of human assessors, on whom the products are tested, and recording their responses. By applying statistical techniques to the results it is possible to make inferences and insights about the products under test.

The primary role of the sensory scientist is to employ the senses of selected and trained human subjects to identify the individual perceptible characteristics of food, and to quantify their intensities. These characteristics are defined by the chemical composition of the food, and the structural organisation that gives foods their expected form and texture. All the important senses in determining consumer liking need to be addressed: appearance, odour, taste, trigeminal response (the last three constituting flavour), touch and hearing. The more general discipline of consumer science then examines how consumers integrate these responses, usually at a subconscious level, to come to a judgement on how much they like the product.

Sensory Analysis of Plant Products

Fruits and vegetables as well as processed plant products originating in the Swiss agricultural sector provide the framework for our research activity. Sensory evaluation issues along the entire value chain are dealt with In close collaboration with plant breeding and analytics at Agroscope, and professional associations and research institutes in Switzerland and abroad. Using scientifically sound sensory testing methods, we develop new findings in the following subject areas:
• Variety descriptions and comparisons
• Influence of cultivation variants
• Influence of plant diseases
• Influence of processing parameters
• Influence of ingredients
• Influence of packaging
• Influence of storage techniques
• Shelf-life behaviour

Based on the aim of promoting plant products in the diet, we generate new knowledge in terms of consumer preferences and aversions in Switzerland:
• Consumer tests
• Driver analyses
• Product concept tests
• Product differentiation