Effects of information on liking of bread

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Abstract

Liking of bread as a function of perceived sensory properties in combination with product information was studied. Four bread types were selected for descriptive sensory analysis and, in a consumer test, 480 consumers scored them for liking when information was provided concerning: flour (origin from conventional versus organic farming system), health effect (cholesterol reducing effect versus no information), and information that was intended to produce a neophobic reaction (admixed amaranth versus no information). The consumers also answered a questionnaire related to the same issues. Samples scored high for liking were affected differently by information than were less well-liked samples. Information about organic production had a greater positive effect on liking than did other types of information, especially for the less well-liked products. The four bread types showed significant differences in liking when information was not skewed in any particular direction (balanced design).

Introduction

Liking of food (Mela, 2001) plays an important role in food choice and is influenced by the sensory quality of the product in combination with the consumer's attitude towards the food. The consumer acceptance test is a powerful tool for measuring the degree of liking of a food (Cardello & Maller, 1982; Resurreccion, 1998)––a percept that is an expression of several sensory sensations. In many developed countries, food can have functions other than stilling one's hunger, e.g., consolation, promise of promoting good health and expression of one's lifestyle. Consumers' growing environmental consciousness has caused aspects of production to become an important factor when evaluating product quality. Some buyers of organically produced foods have a special ideology connected to a particular value system that affects their attitudes (Schifferstein & Oude Ophuis, 1998). Yet even for buyers of organic products, sensory quality was the most important dimension in a product quality evaluation (Magnusson, Arvola, Koivisto Hursti, Åberg, & Sjöden, 2001; Torjusen, Lieblein, Wandel, & Francis, 2001). According to Lyman (1989), liking is not a function of pleasantness or unpleasantness of the sensory properties alone. The perception of total food quality also largely depends on consumer attitudes towards the products. He states: “More than anything else, food meanings and associations represent attitudes toward the food itself, toward its sensory qualities, or toward the physical and social context in which it is served, including other individuals who serve or eat it.”

Attitudes can be conceptualised in several ways. According to three schools of thought, attitudes can be seen as a function of: (i) affective components alone (Thurstone, 1946), (ii) both affective and cognitive components (Worchel & Cooper, 1979) and (iii) affective, cognitive and behavioural components (Kretch & Crutchfield, 1948; Rosenberg, Hovland, McGuire, Abelson, & Brehm, 1960). The three-factor view of attitudes includes, besides a value or feeling component, a belief or cognitive component as well as a behavioural component––a tendency to act–– (Worchel & Cooper, 1979) or so-called demand of action, i.e. choosing, buying, etc. These three factors interact to form an attitude. Despite the different approaches, all views on attitudes include an affective component (Worchel & Cooper, 1979) and an evaluative dimension: liking or disliking (Lyman, 1989).

It might be expected that modification of at least one component of attitude––for example, the cognitive, containing beliefs about the object––could be achieved through information. Similarly, the affective component––encoded as sensations, emotions, associations to the object (Zajonc & Markus, 1982)––could influence attitudes. The consequence could be an effect on the attitude component reflected in a direct evaluation of the object.

Results concerning effects of information on product evaluation may depend on product familiarity (Martins, Pelchat, & Pliner, 1997; Tuorila, Meiselman, Bell, Cardello, & Johnson, 1994) or on the kind of product investigated (Kähkönen & Tuorila, 1998; Kähkönen, Tuorila, & Lawless, 1997; Lange, Rousseau, & Issanchou, 1999; Mialon, Clark, Leppard, & Cox, 2002; Solheim, 1992; Westcombe & Wardle, 1997). The effect may be positive, i.e. for fibre-enriched white bread, there may be no effect at all, i.e. for fibre-enriched whole wheat bread (Mialon et al., 2002), or the effect may be negative, i.e. for fat-reduced cheese (Westcombe & Wardle, 1997). Consumer groups are differently affected by information depending on the age and sex of group members. Guinard, Uotani, and Schlich (2001) found that men in their twenties were affected by beer labels, and Roininen, Lähteenmäki, and Tuorila (1999) stated that women were more interested in health aspects and taste of food than were men. They also found that young consumers were more concerned with taste, whereas older consumers were concerned with health aspects. The environmental and health aspects seem to be prioritized differently by different consumer groups (Schifferstein & Oude Ophuis, 1998; Torjusen et al., 2001; Wandel & Bugge, 1997). Young consumers of organic products were more concerned about the environment and older consumers about their own health. Aaron, Mela, and Evans (1994) stated that rated liking for full- and reduced-fat spreads was influenced by information and followed individuals' beliefs with regard to these products. The relative importance of the affective and cognitive components of attitude may vary with the object. For example, attitudes towards diet foods may be predominantly cognitive and towards sweets predominantly affective (Cantin & Dubè, 1999). Siegel and Risvik (1987) studied two groups of consumers that had been induced into two different cognitive sets and found a significant difference in product liking for dairy bars between the groups.

One Swedish study (Johansson, Haglund, Berglund, Lea, & Risvik, 1999) showed that preference for tomatoes was not only influenced by perceived taste, but also by information concerning the growing system. However, an investigation in the Netherlands, concerning the influence of cognitive information on sensory evaluation of alternatively produced food, showed no similar label effects (Oude Ophuis, 1989).

Ekelund and Fröman (1991) showed that Swedish consumers do search for organically grown products, either based on their personal motivation or in order to avoid chemical additives. Jansson (1994), however, found that the sensory quality of bread was more important than the quality of the production system.

The area of organic farming is increasing in Sweden, and the modification of food production methods towards more sustainable agricultural production initiated by Agenda 21 (http://www.igc.org/habitat/agenda21/; Section II, Chapter 14) has resulted in increased organic production. In daily life, many attitudes are formed on the basis of other people's value dictum (i.e., organically produced food is superior to food produced via conventional methods) before such attitudes are grounded in a foundation of facts (Bruce, 1995; Slania, 1995).Thus, the interdisciplinary research program FOOD 21 (http://www-mat21.slu.se) was formed, with a focus on sustainability in Swedish agricultural production and food quality. The present study was carried out as a part of the FOOD 21 programme, for better understanding of the effect of production system on product quality and consumer acceptance. Wheat from conventional and organic production (E.C. Regulation 2092/91, amended by E.C. Regulation 2491/2001; www.europa.eu.inf.) was used for baking of bread that was later assessed by a trained sensory panel and evaluated for liking by consumers. Sensory evaluation of the object, expressed as degree of liking of bread when varied information was provided, was central in the present study.

The experiment was designed to reveal the interaction between bread “taste” and consumer values and beliefs about farming system, health effects, and unknown ingredients, measured as liking of bread when information was provided. Sources of information were selected to promote variation in Swedish consumers' cognitive and affective reactions. This was done to elucidate the extent to which information would influence liking of bread in a set context where samples were tasted and evaluated.

The aim of the study was to establish how liking of the perceived sensory quality of bread would be affected by information containing varying cognitive statements concerning issues with possible affective connotations. As regards effects on liking of bread, the three factors chosen were related to flour (origin from conventional versus organic farming system), health effects (cholesterol reducing effect versus no information), and information meant to create a neophobic reaction (admixed amaranth versus no information).

Section snippets

Experimental overview

This study involved experimental control over the milling of flour, baking of bread as well as descriptive sensory analysis of the products and a consumer test.

A Swedish variety of winter wheat (Kosack), grown conventionally and organically in commercial wheat production, in Uppland, Sweden, and amaranth (Amaranthus cruentus), grown in a commercial plantation near Łomża, Poland, were used. In order to extract both sifted and wholemeal flour suitable for the experiment, both wheat types were

Results

Overall results

The information concerning flour origin (farming system) significantly affected liking of bread. The variable health effect was a significant factor, as it was involved in a significant interaction, but it did not show a significant effect as such. Finally, the information concerning admixed amaranth (neophobic factor) did not result in significant differences in liking. There were no significant differences in liking of bread between men and women or between consumer groups

Discussion

The significant effect of the main factor bread established that the sensory perception was an important factor for consumers` liking of bread. This is supported by Torjusen et al. (2001), who found that consumers ranked taste and other sensory attributes as the most important aspects of food choice. Magnusson et al. (2001) also found these attributes to be the most important for food purchase. In the present study, it was apparent from the sensory descriptive analysis and PCA that sensory

Acknowledgements

The authors are thankful for the cooperation and kind help received during the project. This study was a part of the FOOD 21 programme (Product Quality Unit) supported by MISTRA, the Foundation for Strategic Environmental Research. The Nord Mills, AB Uppsala, Sweden contributed the wheat used in the experiment and the practical possibility to carry out the experiment. Skogaholms Bröd, AB Uppsala, guaranteed the quality of bread samples used for sensory analyses. The Faculty of Agriculture and

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