Research Methodology
13 Choosing a sensory panel
A panel is a group of research participants, consisting of panelists. You can imagine that a different type of panel is used for research on how consumers will perceive a new flavor of crisps, compared to the subtle change of structure in a cake where sugar is partly replaced by a sweetener. Consumer panels should be a representative of regular consumers of the specific product, while other panels, such as analytical and expert panels, require training before they can do their job.
The type of panel is mainly selected based on the type of research question that you want to answer. It depends on the type of response, that is whether it is an analytical or a hedonic response (see also An important difference: hedonic vs. analytical). An example of a hedonic research question can be: ‘How well is a reduced sugar content in juice by a brand accepted?’ or ‘How much is a new flavor of breakfast yogurt like by people regularly consuming yogurt for breakfast?’. For these types of questions, usually, consumer panels, or lay panels are used. It is important that the panel is a frequent consumer of the product that is tested. When there is an analytical question to be answered, for example: ‘What attributes can be used best to describe the flavor of cheese biscuits’ or ‘What is the difference in sweetness intensity in different food items?’. For these type of questions, analytical panels or expert panels can be used. These panels first need to be trained to be able to conduct such a task. See Figure 1. for how to apply your research question to find a suitable sensory panel, and the knowledge clip for further explanation of the use of different types of panels
5 types of (groups of) panelists
- Consumer panels:
Untrained panels consist of many regular consumers of the product that is being tested. They solely answer affective questions, which is a type of hedonic question. Consumer panels can for example be used when launching a new product, modifying an existing product or when comparing different product formulations. Consumer panels help ensure that the product meets the expectations and preferences of the target market. - Lay panels:
Panels that fall between consumer panels and analytical panels. These panels are not trained, but they have some knowledge of scale use and attribute interpretation. They mainly answer hedonic questions. A lay panel can for example be used during product development to ensure the product meets consumer expectations, or when there is a need to know how the average consumer perceives a product. - Analytical panels:
Trained panels consisting of around ten to twenty panelists. They are trained on attributes and scales and only answer analytical questions. Analytical panels are mainly used to answer descriptive questions. Analytical panels can for example be used when there is a need for precise and detailed information about product attributes or during development and reformulation of products. Analytical panels help ensure products meet specific sensory standards. - Expert panels
Trained panels consisting of around three to ten panelists. They are trained on attributes and scales and only answer analytical questions. Expert panels are mainly used to answer discriminatory questions. They can be used for example to test food quality or machine malfunction in batches, by detection of off-flavor or odor in one specific food product. - Flavorists
Usually only one person in a food manufacturing company. They work to optimize the taste of a product. Flavorists help to develop new flavors or enhance existing flavors, by for example combining different ingredients or chemicals.
illustration of differences between paNEls
Imagine the response on a VAS to the following question: “How smooth is this pudding?”
The average output for each panel is visualized in Figure 1. On the x-axis, VAS output is shown for each sensory panel. With panel training, you can standardize attribute interpretation and scale use so that the peak in the graph can be narrowed. To get back to the question on pudding smoothness, this means that people in the consumer panel will interpret smooth as either creamy, flat, without lumps, or something similar, whereas people in the analytical and expert panel will interpret smooth as: ‘having a texture free from roughness or bumps or ridges or irregularities.’
Figure 1. Differences between consumer, analytical, and expert panels in terms of variation around the mean rating of an attribute.
Case – Consumer research in companies
Companies apply sensory research during the product development process using team tastings. These team tastings can include every employee in smaller companies, also product developers. During the idea generation, experimenting and product selection, team tastings can add value to the product development phase, while requiring less time and resources than consumer panels, or trained panels. Using team tastings, sensory tests during the product development phase can proceed more efficiently, flexible and adjustable. Often, team tastings occur in an unstructured way, and decisions are made based on just a few opinions, as the main reason to perform team tastings is to make fast, low risk decisions.
After team tastings has helped with the product development, selection and sensory optimization, consumer tests can be executed to find out how the new product is perceived by consumers.
Via this link, more in-dept advise of sensory research within companies and enterprises can be found.
A group of research participants used to describe properties or modalities of a food product, or differences between food products.
Analytical testing refers to the objective measurement of the intensity of a sensation
hedonic testing refers to the subjective evaluation of a sensation, for example, liking or palatability.
Analysis that is used to describe the difference between products.
Analysis that is used to describe whether there is a difference between products or not.
Visual Analogue Scale: a rating scale measuring the response from 0 to 100.