Sensory Spectrum: Translating Sensory Data into Consumer Products
Sensory Spectrum brings a unique scientific approach to the North Carolina Research Campus in Kannapolis that translates sensory data into products acceptable to consumers
(NC Research Campus, Kannapolis, NC- December 14, 2011)- From the consumer point of view, deciphering health benefits amidst a sea of brands, colors, styles, types, flavors, health claims and price points is difficult. At least that’s what a consumer panel conducted at Sensory Spectrum’s North Carolina Discovery Center concluded when evaluating yogurt as a healthy snack.
“Our Sensory Community Narrative panel (SCAN) confirmed that people are less familiar with yogurt than we as a society believe,” said Judy Heylmun, Sensory Spectrum’s vice president of business development and director of the North Carolina Discovery Center. “It also demonstrates that people are aware of yogurt but have little knowledge of Greek yogurt.”
Over the last 25 years, Sensory Spectrum has proven the necessity of testing the sensory-value of products in consumer terms. They’ve tested everything from “food to furniture” including beverages, appliances and personal and home care products. As a partner of the North Carolina Research Campus (NCRC) in Kannapolis, Sensory Spectrum is extending sensory analysis from the arena of marketing and product development to the early stages of research.
The company has already contributed to creating a better North Carolina strawberry, which was a project of North Carolina State University’s (NCSU) Plants for Human Health Institute at the NCRC. Sensory Spectrum conducted sensory analysis on 16 strawberry breeding lines and cultivars and scored traits such as appearance, shape, color, flesh texture, firmness and flavor using panels of consumers, chefs and farmers. The sensory analysis was based on Spectrum Descriptive Analysis™, a highly reliable and accurate system of sensory analysis developed by Sensory Spectrum President and Founder Gail Vance Civille. Spectrum Descriptive Analysis™ scientifically rates the flavor, texture, fragrance, skinfeel and fabricfeel of products.
“We enlisted Sensory Spectrum (because of) their core expertise in sensory analysis, which goes to the enth detail of color and flavor and texture and aroma, all of the sensory dimensions,” said James L. Oblinger, formerly with NCSU and now president of the David H. Murdock Research Institute on the NCRC. “We also accessed them because they have built through the years an inventory of testers. Whatever the food product is potato chips, strawberries, fresh fruits and vegetables, processed foods, hairspray, skin cream or fabric, they do it with an accuracy and precision that makes them unique.”
From strawberry fields to laboratories, Oblinger foresees sensory analysis as a tool for NCRC scientists that can help guide their research as it moves from the bench to the marketplace.
“We’ve got a lot of sophisticated instrumentation here,” said Oblinger. “So what do all of those data points mean as it relates to human beings and their preferences? How do you take the analytical side of things and the pure instrumentation and relate that to flavor intensity, for example. Is it certain compounds within fruits or vegetables? We know it is. Have we identified all of those compounds? No, we haven’t. Consumer panelists are going to help identify those. That’s where Sensory Spectrum is the translator.”
About Sensory Spectrum
Sensory Spectrum is a globally recognized management consulting firm specializing in the understanding of the sensory-consumer experience for industry, academia and government. Sensory Spectrum links consumer research with statistical analysis to provide business and technical solutions for decision making. For more information, visit www.sensoryspectrum.com.
About the North Carolina Research Campus
The North Carolina Research Campus in Kannapolis is home to eight universities as well as corporate, government and non-profit partners all focused on research into human health, nutrition and agriculture to prevent, treat and cure disease. The David H. Murdock Research Institute is the NCRC’s flagship organization that serves scientists on and off campus through its six laboratories, scientific equipment and customer-focused research services. The North Carolina State University Plants for Human Health Institute is researching fruits and vegetables to enhance the health-protective value of food crops and to increase the economic impact of North Carolina agriculture.