Understanding cultural differences across global descriptive sensory panels using Generalized Procrustes Analysis

This study investigates the implications of cultural differences on the effectiveness and comparability of global descriptive sensory panels. Six sensory panels spanning three continents (Asia, Europe and North America) evaluated the sensory profiles of six strawberry milk candy products using MMR's descriptive analysis methodology. Each sensory panel developed their own sensory language and scaling, thus allowing for regional differences to be explored. Generalized Procrustes Analysis was applied, to align all the panel data into a consensus sensory space and compare the results.

The findings demonstrated good alignment in the overall similarities and differences of the products across the panels, due to consistency in the ratings of the key sensory attributes that differentiated the products. Differences were observed across the panels in most other attributes, including fruit flavors and those with lower intensities. Regional differences were, in part, due to cultural familiarity, with sensory panels using locally relevant language and references. Panels from Europe and North America demonstrated closer alignment with one another, compared to those from Asia, especially the Indian panel.

The findings emphasize the importance of panel training and highlight areas of focus to align panels globally. Specifically, training on lower intensity attributes, fruit flavors, and clearer definitions and standardized evaluation protocols for texture attributes. This approach can mitigate the influence of cultural nuances and foster comparability in global sensory evaluations, enhancing the reliability and applicability of these assessments in a global context. This work offers insights into the development of effective global sensory evaluation strategies.