Mind over matter? The role of sensory science in our eating experience
The food industry spends an increasing amount of time, energy and money on sensory science.
Millions are ploughed into carefully studying and manipulating the taste, smell and texture of food.
And not just that, but the sounds that packaging makes, the colours of products and packaging; adjusting them for maximum sensory impact.
All these work together to have a significant psychological and physical effect, changing our eating experience.
But the work of food companies only goes so far. Once the food is on our table at home, what happens then?
The plates we eat from, the cutlery we use, the lighting, they all have an effect.
In this episode of the Food Matters Live podcast, we discuss the latest science, ask just how much impact receptacles have on what we taste, and we ask whether we can use these techniques to eat more healthily.
Kezia Cruz, Food Scientist
Kezia Cruz is a foodie by nature, and a Food Scientist with international experience in Sensory Research of different categories of Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG), from soups and yogurt to baby diaper and wall paint.
More specifically, she trains groups of people, also called descriptive sensory panels, to use their five senses to describe products.
The data they deliver helps product developers to make informed decisions, such as choosing best ingredients for a new or improved formulation or understanding sensory characteristics of products in the market
Dr G.B. (Garmt) Dijksterhuis, Senior scientist, Department Experimental Psychology, Utrecht University
Dr G.B. (Garmt) Dijksterhuis studied experimental psychology and methodology at the University of Utrecht and wrote his PhD dissertation at the department of Data Theory at the University of Leiden, in the Netherlands.
He has written or co-authored over a hundred publications in sensory and consumer science, statistics and psychology.
He is one of the founders of the Sensometric society and was its first president. Also, he is a member of the editorial board of the journal Food Quality and Preference.
Garmt Dijksterhuis has over 25 years experience in sensory science and experimental psychology and worked in academia, research institutes and in the food industry.
He has done research on a variety of topics including multisensory perception, consumer (food) choice, and sensometrics.
