The impact of sensory attributes of mandarins on consumer perception and preferences

Although the sensory characterization of mandarins has usually been performed by trained assessors, in recent years, the methodologies that depict sensory descriptions from the perception of consumers, such as the check-all-that-apply (CATA) questionnaires have become very popular. In this work, an exploratory study was first carried out using a focus group (FG) technique to determine attributes and aspects that influence the decision to purchase mandarins. Secondly, the consumer panel recruited 100 regular mandarin consumers that were randomly divided into two groups. Group “A” received segments of 15 mandarins. Group “B”, instead of receiving the same mandarins in segments, they received them as a whole fruit having to peel them by themselves. Both groups evaluated the total acceptability with a 9-point hedonic scale and answered a CATA questionnaire composed of 38 terms for Group “A” and 52 terms for Group “B”. Although the consumers in the FG described an "ideal" mandarin as easy-to-peel, no significant difference (p > 0.05) was found in the acceptability between groups “A” and “B”. Characteristics such as sweet, very sweet, fresh smell, sweet smell, bright, fruity taste, fresh flavor, typical flavor, balanced taste and nice flavor were strongly and positively correlated with overall consumers’ acceptance. These descriptors could be considered the sensory drivers of the liking of mandarins.