Sensory evaluation and consumer acceptability of pale‐fleshed and orange‐fleshed sweetpotato by school children and mothers with preschool children

Abstract

AbstractThe purpose of this study was to evaluate the flavour profile and consumer acceptability of four sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.) cultivars that differed in β‐carotene content. Descriptive sensory profiles of the sweetpotato cultivars were determined using a sensory panel. Consumers in the Lake Zone of Tanzania comprised school children (n = 94) and mothers with preschool children (n = 59). Additionally, mothers gave acceptability scores for how they perceived their children's acceptance. Traditional pale‐fleshed (PFSP) and high‐β‐carotene orange‐fleshed (OFSP) sweetpotato cultivars showed distinct differences in sensory profile. Mean consumer responses indicated that OFSP were more acceptable than PFSP; mothers differed from school children by giving higher acceptance scores. Mothers did not score the perceived acceptability for their preschool children different from themselves. Segmentation appeared to suggest three distinct patterns of consumer acceptability among school children and mothers. The majority gave high acceptability scores to both OFSP and PFSP. Those in the smaller second group gave higher scores to OFSP than to PFSP, while those (particularly school children) in the third segment gave lower scores to the OFSP cultivar Karote DSM. There was evidence that school children and mothers viewed the sweetpotato cultivars differently with respect to fibrous texture. A preliminary storage trial where the sweetpotato cultivars were kept for 12 weeks in pit structures indicated that the acceptability and sensory profile of the cultivars did not differ with storage. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry