Chocolate Flavor Research Articles

Effects of packaging color on expected flavor, texture, and liking of chocolate in Brazil and France

Recent research has shown that the colors of plateware, glassware, cups, packaging, and even of the ambient and its lighting are able to influence consumers' preferences, expectations, and perceptions of taste, aroma, texture, and liking of food and beverages. This study contributes to the subject by investigating how packaging colors affect the expectations of sweetness, bitterness, fruitiness, melting, and liking for chocolates in Brazil and France. Two groups of 210 consumers (N = 420), one from each country, evaluated samples of milk and dark chocolate packaged in seven colors: black, blue, brown, green, red, pink, and yellow. Analyses of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey-Kramer's test indicated that there were multiple significant effects of packaging color on consumers’ expectations. Multiple factor analysis (MFA) showed that expected sweetness, fruitiness, and liking were correlated to each other and inversely correlated to expected bitterness. While both chocolates were expected the least sweet and the most bitter when in black packaging, they were expected the sweetest and the least bitter when in yellow or pink packaging. Interestingly, the same black packaging made the milk chocolate the best rated and the dark chocolate the worst rated on expected liking, showing that a packaging color may have inverse effects on hedonic ratings depending on the type of chocolate. Although French consumers eat more chocolate and with higher cocoa content than Brazilians, the effects of packaging color were not significantly different between cultures.

Analisis Perencanaan Produksi Roti Untuk Memenuhi Permintaan di UD. Bunga Bakery

Production planning can be defined as a process for producing goods in a certain period in accordance with what is predicted or scheduled through organizing resources such as labor, raw materials, machinery and other equipment. Determining the optimal number of products to be produced is the key to proper production planning. Production needs are carried out to meet demand at the minimum cost level. The purpose of this study is to estimate (predict) demand which can be used as the basis for making a production plan, by determining how many products to produce, utilizing limited resources efficiently. And increase production capacity to meet the ups and downs of demand. After forecasting by using a constant method, linear and quadratic bread, sayakaya, chocolate, coconut, blueberry, pineapple with the smallest error method, namely the standard error estimate (SEE), the constant method has the smallest error value. The next period is predicted the number of requests for sarikaya bread for 464700 packs, chocolate flavor 1390152 packs, coconut flavor 508524 packs, blueberry flavor 515112 packs, and pineapple flavor 256356 packs.

Controlling the hardness of ice cream, gelato and similar frozen desserts

Controlling the hardness of ice cream, gelato and similar frozen desserts

Evaluation of the Thermal Inactivation of a Salmonella Serotype Oranienburg Strain During Cocoa Roasting at Conditions Relevant to the Fine Chocolate Industry.

Cocoa roasting produces and enhances distinct flavor of chocolate and acts as a critical control point for inactivation of foodborne pathogens in chocolate production. In this study, the inactivation kinetics of Salmonella enterica subsp. enterica serotype Oranienburg strain was assessed on whole cocoa beans using roasting protocols relevant to the fine chocolate industry. Beans were inoculated with 107–108 log10 CFU/bean of Salmonella Oranienburg and roasted at 100–150°C for 2–100 min. A greater than 5 log10 reduction of S. Oranienburg was experimentally achieved after 10-min roasting at 150°C. Data were fitted using log-linear and Weibull models. The log-linear models indicated that the roasting times (D) needed to achieve a decimal reduction of Salmonella at 100, 110, 115, 120, 130, and 140°C were 33.34, 18.57, 12.92, 10.50, 4.20, and 1.90 min, respectively. A Weibull model indicated a decrease in the Salmonella inactivation rate over time (β < 1). Statistical analysis indicated that the Weibull model fitted the data better compared to a log-linear model. These data demonstrate the efficacy of cocoa roasting in inactivation of Salmonella and may be used to guide food safety decision-making.

Laurel Tangyuan and Fuwan Chocolate Incident - How to do better people-oriented external communication

The "Fuwan Chocolate", which originated in Pingtung, Taiwan, is a world-famous chocolate brand. In 2020, “Fuwan” won the gold medal during the “World Chocolate Competition”, which known as the "Oscar Award” in the chocolate industry. After winning the grand prize, "Fuwan Chocolate" took advantage of the momentum and launched joint products with well-known brands, such as Laurel Corp (Tangyuan). Unexpectedly, the father of Fuwan’s CEO sexually harassed a female intern five years ago, and the CEO also scolded the victim for the chaotic private life after his father being accused. This old matter that has been 5 years was brought up to the stage again this year. Although Fuwan apologized on their Facebook fan page afterwards, it was not accepted by netizens. After three weeks of uproar, its co-branded manufacturer Laurel announced the suspension of production of chocolate flavor tangyuan in collaboration with Fuwan. Many well-known Taiwanese manufacturers also followed the step in the meanwhile. The established credibility and image are now seriously damaged. This study is mainly to discuss the external communication methods and processing results of "Fuwan" and "Laurel" by comparing the pros and cons of their processing methods. We hope this research will be able to provide a better people-oriented communication method that may combined with local condition as a reference when same incident once happened in the future.

Sensory evaluation of chocolate bar production materials of dry cocoa seeds in various fermentation treatments

The processing of chocolate bars is influenced by cocoa beans used. Chocolate bar is one of the downstream products with a simple processing process. The taste and aroma in candy comes from chocolate bars. Fermentation is an important activity in the formation of cocoa flavour. This study aims to determine the panellists’ acceptance of chocolate bars produced from various fermentation treatments of sun-dried cocoa beans. The materials used in this study were cocoa beans of varieties of Lindak. The fermentation variation consisted of two treatments, namely, the addition of the inoculum gradually (A1) and the addition of the inoculum simultaneously at the beginning of fermentation (A2). The inocula added were Sacharomyces cerevisiae (FNCC 3056), Lactococcus lactis (FNC 0086) and Acetobacter aceti (FNCC 0016). The control treatment was dry cocoa beans without fermentation (A0). The fermentation time was 120 h, then the fermented cocoa beans were processed into chocolate bars. The resulting chocolate bars were subjected to sensory analysis including evaluation of the taste of sepia, bitter, and sour taste and in the test the polyphenol content of chocolate bars was used. The results showed that there was a decrease in the septic, bitter and sour taste from treatment A0, A2 and A1, respectively. The highest polyphenol content was in A0, A2, and A1, respectively. Panellists stated that the preferred chocolate bar was made from cocoa beans with A1 treatment.

Influence of S. cerevisiae and P. kluyveri as starters on chocolate flavour.

Fermented cocoa beans (Theobroma cacao L.) are a pivotal raw material for chocolate production. A cocktail yeast applied in the cocoa fermentation process can promote the formation of pleasant metabolites. Saccharomyces, Pichia and Hanseniaspora have been widely used in fermentation to improve the final product organoleptic profile, highlighting that fermentation is a critical point for chocolate flavour precursor production. This study aims to evaluate the impact of Pichia kluyveri and Saccharomyces cerevisiae strains as starter cultures on the fermentation for two cocoa hybrids, FA13 and CEPEC2002. During fermentation processes, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and protein profiles were assessed. Chocolates produced were also assessed regarding the presence of VOCs. Eighty VOCs were identified using gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry analysis. Mass spectrometry provided the protein profile evolution during fermentation and showed that the profiles changed with inoculation type (spontaneous versus inoculated fermentation). Chocolate obtained from FA13 inoculated with S. cerevisiae strain contained a greater amount of organics acids, being categorised as sourer than chocolate produced by spontaneous fermentation of FA13. CEPEC2002 inoculated with S. cerevisiae strain in co-culture with P. kluyveri strain generated less sour and sweeter chocolate than spontaneous fermentation only. Chocolates from inoculated assays with starter cultures were more accepted by evaluators, highlighting that P. kluyveri and S. cerevisiae influence the composition of VOCs. Besides, protein profiles also changed throughout fermentation. Further investigation should be conducted to clarify protein degradation dynamics during inoculated fermentations to define which of the microbial cultures positively affect the chocolate sensory characteristics. © 2021 Society of Chemical Industry.

Sensory Characteristics of Dairy By-Products as Potential Milk Replacers in Ice Cream

Novel strategies for wheys application, decreasing its negative environmental impact, represent a challenge for dairy industries. The use of wheys as replacers may lead to adverse sensory quality changes in conventional dairy products. This study aimed to investigate the sensory effects of the use of ricotta whey (RW), cheese whey (CW), and butter whey (BW) in replacement to whole milk (WM) at different ratios (0:100%, 25:75%, 50:50%, 75:25%, and 100:0%, w/w) in chocolate ice creams. All formulations, including a commercial sample used as a reference, were analyzed for overall liking, purchase intention, just-about-right (JAR), and survival analysis. RW, CW, and BW up to 75%, 100%, and 25% did not affect (p &gt; 0.05) the overall liking, respectively. Purchase intention was only decreased (p &lt; 0.05) by BW at 50%, 75%, and 100% compared to a commercial sample. Considering data from PCA and PLSR associated with hedonic scores and penalty analysis, the main adverse sensory effects on overall liking were: increased perception (p &lt; 0.05) of chocolate flavor by RW, CW, and BW, melting velocity by RW, sweetness by CW and BW, and chocolate aroma by BW. Survival analysis indicated that BW could be added up to a maximum of 84.15%, while no rejection was detected for RW and CW. Based on results, RW, CW, and BW represent potential milk replacers to be used by the dairy industry, decreasing the environmental impact of these dairy by-products.

Mass Spectrometry-Based Flavor Monitoring of Peruvian Chocolate Fabrication Process.

Flavor is one of the most prominent characteristics of chocolate and is crucial in determining the price the consumer is willing to pay. At present, two types of cocoa beans have been characterized according to their flavor and aroma profile, i.e., (1) the bulk (or ordinary) and (2) the fine flavor cocoa (FFC). The FFC has been distinguished from bulk cocoa for having a great variety of flavors. Aiming to differentiate the FFC bean origin of Peruvian chocolate, an analytical methodology using gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was developed. This methodology allows us to characterize eleven volatile organic compounds correlated to the aromatic profile of FFC chocolate from this geographical region (based on buttery, fruity, floral, ethereal sweet, and roasted flavors). Monitoring these 11 flavor compounds during the chain of industrial processes in a retrospective way, starting from the final chocolate bar towards pre-roasted cocoa beans, allows us to better understand the cocoa flavor development involved during each stage. Hence, this methodology was useful to distinguish chocolates from different regions, north and south of Peru, and production lines. This research can benefit the chocolate industry as a quality control protocol, from the raw material to the final product.

Development and characterization of green banana-based fondant icing

ABSTRACT The insertion of functional foods in the confectionery industry is a growing reality, aiming to meet a growing demand for products that are visually attractive and at the same time healthy. The present study aimed to develop and characterize the physical, physicochemical, microbiological, and sensory properties of fondant icings based on green banana biomass and flour. Two formulations were developed (NFBI - Neutral Flavor Biomass-based Icing, and CFBI - Chocolate Flavor Biomass-based Icing), which were compared with the commercial fondant icings (NFCI - Neutral Flavor Commercial Icing, and CFCI - Chocolate Flavor Commercial Icing). The fondant icings were evaluated for centesimal composition, caloric value, physical, physicochemical (resistant starch, titratable acidity, water activity, texture, and color), and microbiological characteristics, as well as sensory acceptance. The icings based on green banana biomass and flour showed higher levels of ash, fiber, resistant starch, and protein, as well as lower total caloric value, and thus, were healthier. These icings were also softer and had more intense color compared to commercial ones, as well as good sensory acceptance, especially the one with chocolate flavor, which had greater than 72% approval. Microbiological analyses indicated that the icings could be stored under refrigeration (&lt;4 ºC) for 30 days. Given the nutritional quality and health benefits, the icings prepared with green banana biomass and flour proved to be promising and could serve a niche market represented by people who seek a healthier diet or need to control their sugar consumption, such as diabetics.

Plant-based frozen desserts: temporal sensory profile and preference

Abstract To respond to the growing demand for specific diets aimed at lactose intolerant and vegan consumers, chocolate-flavored frozen desserts with no addition of lactose and other animal-derived products were produced, and the temporal profile and the consumers' acceptance of the samples with sucrose substitution by sweeteners were also investigated. Six frozen dessert formulations were made, three made with soy protein and three with rice protein, sweetened with sucrose, sucralose, and stevia. Acceptance tests and Time-Intensity (TI) analysis were performed to assess the intensity and duration of the attributes sweet taste, bitter taste, chocolate flavor, and melting behavior. The results showed no effect of the different plant proteins on the temporal profile and the acceptance by consumers. The use of sweeteners altered the temporal sensory profile and negatively impacted the acceptance of the samples. The sucralose-sweetened formulations were characterized by a lower intensity of sweet taste, chocolate flavor, and bitterness, whereas the stevia-sweetened formulations showed greater intensity and duration of the bitter taste. Characteristics such as the low intensity of chocolate flavor and the increase in sweetness affected the final acceptance of the product. The melting time of frozen desserts has been extended with the use of body agents to replace sucrose.

Into the minds of coffee consumers: perception, preference, and impact of information in the sensory analysis of specialty coffee

This study aimed to analyze the knowledge, perspectives, and preferences of consumers about specialty coffees and to investigate how information can influence the perception of taste and the sensory characteristics of consumers. A descriptive-analytic survey was conducted through a questionnaire in a digital format with 1005 respondents. Four trained Q-Grader tasters evaluated a sample of cherry coffee fermented. The Specialty Coffee Association developed the cupping protocol used. According to the perceived descriptors, a sensory analysis was performed with the same coffee with 101 consumers to evaluate the influence of information received before the analysis. The chocolate flavor is the most expected in coffee. However, the participants are willing to try different specialty coffees. The coffee has been considered excellent (85.15 points) by Q-Grader tasters and widely accepted by consumers. Check-all-that-Apply (CATA) test showed that consumers could be influenced by information. When the coffee has been presented without information, the consumers noticed a more caramel flavor. However, when the information has been added to the same coffee, the citric flavor was more noticeable. In conclusion, information on specialty coffees should be more widespread. Consumer's expectations can be influenced by information, which in turn can modify their sensory perception.

Are consumers willing to pay for a product processed by emerging technologies? The case of chocolate milk drink processed by cold plasma

This study aimed to evaluate the consumers' perception (n = 1085) about processing chocolate milk drinks by cold plasma. The consumers were asked about food technology neophobia, familiarity and, willingness to buy the product, sensory attributes, and perceived quality compared to traditional technologies. The consumers considered that new technologies could have a negative impact on health, natural quality of the product, and environment, that the benefits of the new technologies are overstated, and that could be a risk replacing the traditional technologies. However, most of the consumers (72.3%) were willing to buy the chocolate milk drink processed by cold plasma, mainly if the price is similar to that of the conventional product. Chocolate milk drink should have a brown color, chocolate flavor, typical chocolate and milk taste, and high consistency. The willingness to buy the new product increases with the belief that the new technologies would not bring negative health effects, while it decreases with the unfamiliarity with new technologies, doubts about the information provided by the media, or no perceived quality compared to the traditional technology. Therefore, it is important that the food industry provide consumers with trustable, understandable, and clear information so that the lack of confidence could be overcome.

Manual Brew House Blend Coklat khas Indonesia

Experimental research in the form of making house blend chocolate by using chocolate originating from Indonesia, namely Java Srawana, Lampung Pesawaran and Sulawesi Celebes using the Manual Brew method using cezve tools. The goal is to get aspects of the original chocolate flavor image from chocolate blend and add interesting experiences in drinking original chocolate from Indonesia. The research method used is an experimental research method. By making 3 house blend chocolate recipes and tested on 50 panelists. The data collection method is carried out by distributing questionnaires to panelists. Data analysis methods used were organoleptic test, Variant Analysis (ANOVA) and t test, Tukey Ba, with the help of Microsoft Excel 2010 and SPSS.22 software (Statistical Product for Service Solution). The results of this study were obtained, house blend chocolate with the composition of Lampung Pesawaran 6gr, Java Srawana 6gr and Sulawesi Celebes 8gr, received by all panelists from the aspects of aroma, flavor, acidity, bitterness, astringent (taste), caramelly, creamy, texture. Produces a real chocolate flavor with a banana-flavored sweet and slightly bitter, then accompanied by the smell of vanilla.

Oral processing preference affects flavor perception in dark chocolate with added ingredients.

Chocolate has specific rheological behavior during oral processing that delivers its distinct sensory characteristics. When incorporating functional or flavoring ingredients into chocolate, these properties must be maintained to meet consumer expectation. Water-soluble and fat-soluble ingredients have a potential effect on the properties of chocolate; therefore, successfully adding functional supplements in this medium can have challenges. This study investigated the effect of functional or flavoring ingredients on chocolate microstructure, mouthfeel (texture), and flavor release, during oral processing. Participants were classified by their oral processing "pattern": a chewing preference (CP), a sucking preference (SP), and a mixed group who had a preference for both chewing and sucking (MP). Chocolate samples (72% dark chocolate) were prepared with different flavor ingredients (water-soluble: ginger powder and fat-soluble: menthol). Instrumental testing of chocolate viscosity and hardness showed no significant differences in chocolate with low concentrations of added ingredients (0.5% ginger and 0.1% mint), while chocolate with higher concentration (2.5% ginger and 0.5% mint) showed a significant difference compared to standard chocolate. Modified Qualitative Descriptive Analysis (MQDA) tests showed no significant differences in sensory perception of texture between the formulations, or the oral processing behavior groups. There was an impact on flavor perception both from composition and from oral processing behavior. The CP group rated the chocolate with the lowest flavoring concentration as also having the lowest cocoa flavor intensity. Moreover, the MP and SP groups showed a similar perception of cocoa flavor intensity.

Intelligent Classification of Cocoa Bean using E-nose

Cocoa bean (Theobrama cacao) is an essential raw material in the manufacture of chocolate, and their classification is crucial for the synthesis of good chocolate flavour. Cocoa beans appear to be very similar to one another when visualised. Hence, an electronic device named the electronic nose (E-Nose) is used to classify the odor of cocoa beans to give the best cocoa bean quality. E-nose is a set of an array of chemical sensors used to sense the gas vapours produced by the cocoa bean and the raw data collected was kept in Microsoft Excel, and the classification took place in Octave. They then underwent normalisation technique to increase classification accuracy, and their features were extracted using mean calculation. The features were classified using CBR, and the similarity value is obtained. The results show that CBR's classification accuracy, specificity and sensitivity are all 100%.

Pod storage time and spontaneous fermentation treatments and their impact on the generation of cocoa flavour precursor compounds

SummaryMost of volatile flavour compounds occurred during the cocoa postharvest operations including pod storage and fermentation whom effects on these metabolites were aimed by the present study. Three different spontaneous fermentation treatments were performed on the farm, and the main isolated yeasts were identified using PCR‐DGGE technique. Fermented cocoa beans were solar‐dried, and their flavour compounds were identified using solid phase microextraction technique–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. The main results showed that Pichia kudriavzevii was common yeast involved in the cocoa fermentation. Thirty flavour precursor compounds grouped into six chemical families including alcohols and pyrazines were identified in raw cocoa samples. ACP showed that short durations of pod storage and fermentation promote the formation of flavour precursors of cocoa. No spontaneous cocoa fermentation treatment influenced the occurrence of aroma compounds. The generation of flavour compounds depends only on the pod storage and the fermentative microorganisms of cocoa.

Relationship between bioactive compounds and sensory properties of dark chocolate produced from Brazilian hybrid cocoa

SummaryThis work evaluated the influence of bioactive compounds on the sensory profile and acceptability of dark chocolate produced from Brazilian hybrid cocoa. The results showed that higher contents of catechin, epicatechin, caffeine, total phenolic compounds and flavonoids contributed to higher intensity of bitterness, cocoa flavour, acid taste, and astringency, and negatively affected the acceptance of chocolate samples from the TSH1188, PH16, and CEPEC2002 varieties. Other varieties SR162 and BN34 showed lower contents of caffeine and phenolic compounds, and higher concentration of theobromine, revealed notes of sweet/caramel and fruity flavour, presented a higher acceptance. This research showed the great potential of the ‘Catongo’ (SR162) and BN34 hybrids from southern Bahia (Brazil) for the production of fine cocoa. The chemical and sensory evaluations may be a strategic tool to help cocoa producers in deciding which genetic varieties should be marketed as fine cocoa, adding value to the product and highlighting promising cocoa varieties.

Temporal profile of low calorie lactose-free ice cream chocolate flavor: temporal dominance sensation and multiple time–intensity analysis

The food industry has a consumer market with growing interest in modified products, so this study aimed to evaluate consumer acceptance and characterize the temporal profile of traditional and lactose-free "low calorie chocolate ice creams". Six different samples were produced: three formulated with traditional whole milk sweetened with sucrose, sucralose and stevia and three formulated with lactose-free whole milk, also sweetened with the same sweeteners. Time-intensity analysis, temporal dominance of sensation and acceptance analysis were performed. The ice cream with lactose-free milk sweetened with stevia had a lower acceptance. The samples sweetened with sucrose were characterized by intensity, duration and dominance of the "sweet" and "chocolate flavor", while the samples sweetened with sucralose were characterized by intensity and duration of the "sweet" stimulus and also by the dominance of the "milk flavor" stimulus. The samples sweetened with stevia were characterized by greater intensity and duration of bitter stimulus, being also characterized by intensity of sweet taste and chocolate flavor. It can be verified that the use of stevia promotes relevant difference in lactose-free ice cream when compared to traditional ice cream, increasing the duration and dominance of bitter taste, as well impacting and decreasing the consumer acceptance. However, the addition of sucralose did not promote significant changes in the profile of both formulations.

Structural and sensory studies on chocolate spreads with hydrocolloid-based oleogels as a fat alternative

In this study, chocolate spreads were designed using oleogels with two oils (olive and sunflower), and hydroxypropylmethylcellulose (HPMC) and xanthan gum (XG), as structuring agents. Thus, the lipid profile of the spreads can be improved by totally or partially replacing the coconut butter used in their preparation. Structural behaviour was analysed using confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM), small amplitude oscillatory rheology, and a spreadability test. A Free Choice Profile analysis was performed by consumers to determine the sensorial attributes that described the chocolate spreads. The results showed that the oleogels conferred consistency to the spreads because of the network formed by HPMC and XG. However, while coconut butter replacement at 50% gave a similar structure to the control spread, 100% replacement resulted in less homogeneous spreads. This trend might be attributed to the chemical compatibility between the oleogel-coconut butter, which led to stronger systems. Sensory evaluation showed that chocolate spread replaced by sunflower oleogel at 50% presented sensory attributes like the control spread with “creamy appearance”, “creamy texture”, and “cocoa flavour”. Therefore, using oleogels can be a viable and healthy alternative to replace the saturated fat present in chocolate spreads.