Consumer Acceptance and Readiness to Pay for Green Juices Containing Grain Grass Juices in Kosovo

Abstract

Green juices containing grain grasses such as wheatgrass, barley grass, oat grass and alpha alpha grass are considered nowadays novel functional foods, super food or specific food, because of their high content of health promoting nutrition’s such as antioxidants, polyphenols, chlorophyll, amino acids, minerals, vitamins, active enzymes and other nutrients. Such green juices are an innovation, therefore it was of crucial importance to conduct sensory analyses to determine the consumer acceptance and readiness to pay, as well as juice extraction yield for cost calculations and decision making on commercial potentials of these promising future products. The study evaluated sensory characteristics and consumer acceptance of green juices extracted from wheatgrass, barley grass and oat grass, as well as the best rated grass extracts of this research-Wheatgrass juice in formulation with 6 different 100% fruit juices. The commercial juices involved in this research are: apple juice, wild apple (Malus sylvestris) juice, Strawberry 30% and Apple 70% Juice, Sour cherry 30% and apple70% juice, peach 30 % and apple 70% juice, apricot 30% and apple70% juice. A five 5 point structured hedonic evaluation test for acceptance was conducted with 62 non-professional panelists. Data collected by the evaluation forms was processed using Statistical Regression and Descriptive Analysis to obtain important statistical values such as the average acceptance-means, standard deviations, coefficients of variation, correlation analysis for each analyzed organoleptic characteristic, as well as the overall mean acceptance and standard error of each sample. The juices involved in this research were also assessed for pH, Total Soluble Content oBrix, Titrable acidity, and sugar/acid ratio because of their direct interference in sensory attributes of juices. Keywords: wheatgrass juice, sensory evaluation, novel food, functional food.