Sensory & Consumer Research Case StudiesNorth America2015

R&D Prototype Testing R&D Functional Ingredients R&D Reformulations Recipe Reformulations in Food Service R&D New Product Launch Perceived Value Testing QA: Secondary Supplier Approval QA: Product Matching QA: Private Label vs National Brand QA: Driving Consistency Across Multiple Plants

Case Studies Based on Testing Group

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R&D Prototypes: Child Panel

Chicken Nugget Project (Child Panel) Objective: Likeability data on prototypes need in from ages 5-12 Three new Cheese Stuffed Chicken Nugget prototypes were developed

and our client needed to quantify which prototype(s) to move forward with based on kid’s likability of the products

Children 5-12 were recruited and screened for the panel Child-only and Parent/Child panels were both conducted to give the client

insight into the performance of the products

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Savory Flavor Enhancer for Salt Reduction Client wanted to quantify salt reduction percentage when using their

new savory flavor enhancer. Large-scale panel was completed comparing a variety of attributes

of savory dishes using a traditional recipe with salt only and formulations containing reduced salt and the savory flavor enhancer.

Client was able to quantify the % salt reduction that could be achieve with no adverse flavor/sensory effects using the functional ingredient.

Data was as an internal verification of the success of the product and as a white paper for marketing the flavor enhancer.

R&D Functional Ingredients

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R&D Reformulations

Private Label Snack Cracker Project Large-scale consumer panel to quantify performance of a new formulation

of a private label snack cracker. Items tested were:

Current private label formulation New private label formulation National Brand

Retailer was able to quantify and insure ensure consumer acceptance increased with new formulation prior to full production.

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Recipe Reformulations: Food Service

Mushroom Ravioli Recipe Change A multinational restaurant chain wanted to change their mushroom ravioli

to more mirror the menu description of the item. Current and New Recipes were received from the supplier and prepared

as per client guidelines. Consumers were recruited and screened based on the frequency they

visited that specific restaurant chain and their consumption level of mushrooms and mushroom containing foods.

The restaurant chain was able to quantify the improvements to the recipe and confidently launch the new recipe under the same menu listing.

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Adult Nutrition Project The client was interested in entering a new market with a private

label adult nutrition beverage. Four flavor profiles were sent and rated for consumer acceptability to

determine which flavor to take to market

R&D New Product Launch

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Perceived Value of Quick Serve Items with Reduced Serving Size Soft drinks and hot items were evaluated using large scale

consumers panels for perceived value at current and reduced serving and packaging sizes

Distractor questions and proper panel timing were employed to keep panelists unware of panel objective

Resulted in the client quantifying the effect of the reduction of serving size with no change in price point—massive savings for the client

Perceived Value Testing

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QA: Secondary Supplier Approval

Signature Biscuits—Secondary Supplier Approval to Produce Multinational restaurant chain wants to bring on an additional supplier for

their signature biscuits served with each meal. It was imperative to bring on a supplier that could match the product with no notable differences.

Large-scale triangle test used to compare current and potential suppliers’ products to insure no significant difference between biscuits.

Allowed the vetting of the secondary supplier into their supply chain.

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QA: Product Matching

Whole Roasted Chicken—Product Matching Multinational restaurant chain wants to bring on an additional supplier to

produce whole, roasted chicken matching a chef-created gold standard. Experienced panelists were used to complete a flavor profile test to define

the sensory experience for the gold standard roasted chicken. This sensory definition was given to the supplier to help them understand

the needs and to properly match the product. This study was conducted quickly and allowed the client to have a proper

sensory definition for the product and information that could be used on a product specification.

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QA: Private Label vs. National Brand

Product Performance to National Brand Routine monitoring programs using sensory screening can be completed

to align private label products with national brands or insure that specific attributes are met or exceeded by private labels.

QA teams can set a target level of “liking” for their products based on branding strategy

Gives the retailer or private label supplier the information they can use to drive improvement in quality

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QA example projects: Product Consistency Across Multiple Plants

Multi Location Bakery The client produces an iconic or gold standard product and must have

consistency between bakery locations (All locations must produce identical products.)

Multiple locations submit samples for testing to ensure similar consumer acceptability.

Using preference questions, open ended questions, and just about right (JAR) questions we were able to quantify drift from the gold standard and give directional data to diagnose potential problems with a particular location.

Sensory panels are often used as a part of a quality assurance program to verify shelf life, monitor changes when major ingredients have changed, and to level set products made in multiple plants

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