Perception of Texture by Trained and Consumer Panelists

ABSTRACT Four experiments were conducted to assess the relationships between judgments of the perceived texture of foods by trained and consumer panelists. In Experiment 1, no differences were observed between trained texture profile panelists and naive consumers in a similarities scaling task. In Experiments 2 and 3, good linear correlations were observed between scalar judgments of texture, although a broader perceptual range was evidenced for trained panelists. In Experiment 4, psychophysical exponents of texture were found to be larger for trained than for consumer panelists, and judgments of acceptability also differed between the two groups. It was concluded that, through experience, trained texture profile panelists develop a broader perceptual range of textures, but that regression equations can be developed to relate these data to consumer data.