Improving Food Quality and

Safety: Overview of the

quality attributes in foods
Daryl Lund
Professor Emeritus
University of Wisconsin-Madison
President International Academy of Food Sci and Technol 2010-2012
Editor in Chief IFT Journals 2003-2012
 Outline

•Definition of Quality
•Product Characteristics
•Sensory Tests
•Hidden Characteristics
 Quality Control/Quality Assurance:
A Prerequisite for Safe, Saleable Food
Foods the producer prepares should:
• look good
• smell good
• taste good
• be safe to eat
• satisfy the buyer
Quality as a Marketing Tool
Small and medium
food processing
businesses all over the world
increasingly have to
consider the production of
good quality products
as essential to their survival.
Quality attributes
are used as a marketing tool.
 Meeting Expectations
Producers who sell intermediate products,
such as dried fruits,

to a secondary processor will find that the

buyer expects the foods to meet an agreed

standard.
 Definition of Quality
Quality = composite of desirable
characteristics or as
fitness for use
Measured in terms of consumer
satisfaction
with the product

Bottom Line: Meet Expectations!

 Consistency
From the consumer’s point of view, as long as the product
gives the same level of satisfaction from one purchase
period to another, the product is of good quality.

Bottom Line: Consistent Characteristics of the Product

 Availability Matters!
Consumers and producers gauge quality
based on brand popularity.
From the producer’s point of view
quality can imply product reliable availability.

Bottom Line:
Reliable Product Availability Matters!
 Product Characteristics
Every food product has characteristics measurable
by
Sensory evaluation methods
Physical and chemical tests
Microbiological assessment, and
Nutritional evaluation
Bottom Line:
Some characteristics are easy to assess visually;
others require sophisticated equipment for
assessment.
Physical characteristics
•Flavor
•Odor
•Color
•Texture
•Viscosity
•Consistency
Hidden characteristics
•Chemical Composition

•Nutritional Value

•Microbial Safety
Our Physical Senses

•Sight
•Touch
•Smell
•Taste
•Hearing
 Appearance Factors
Size, shape

Wholeness Colour
Gloss

Consistency Forms of
damage
 Specific Characteristics
• Size
• Shape
• Color
• Gloss

Bottom Line:
For fruits and vegetables, these
characteristics are also used to
determine when to harvest!
Quantitative Measurements
• Color meters

• Gloss meters

• Texture meters

• Viscosity meters
 Consistency = Viscosity
• Consistency is measured by viscosity,
higher viscosity products being of higher
consistency and
lower viscosity being of lower consistency.

• The simplest method to measure consistency

is to measure the time it takes for the food to
run through a small hole of a known
diameter.
Viscometer
 Textural Factors

Firmness Chewiness

Handfeel Mouthfeel
Texture

Softness Juiciness
Texture Analyzer
 Sensory Factors

Sweet Sour
Aroma
by the Flavour Sensation by
nose factors the tongue

Salty Bitter
 Quantitative Measurements
Taste buds can be quantified.
Nose perceives aromas.
Flavor = Taste + Odor
Gas chromatography: measure volatile compounds
Salt: conductivity, saltometer
Sugar: refractive index
Acidity: titration
 Sensory Tests
Sensory Evaluation:
dependent on human judgment
Therefore, subjective.
TYPES
tests for difference
tests for acceptability
 Tests for Difference

Used to identify detectable differences with

like or dislike
TRIANGLE TEST
trained laboratory panel with three coded samples
Two are identical
Panelists must pick the odd sample
 Tests for Acceptability

Subjects are required to state the level of

like or dislike for products

NINE POINT HEDONIC RATING SCALE

Like extremely Neither like nor dislike Dislike slightly

Like very much Dislike
moderately
 Hedonic Testing
Judges randomly selected; no training
Nine point scale with
“9” for “Like extremely “ and
“1” for “Dislike extremely”

Useful for monitoring the

level of consumer satisfaction with a product
 Hidden Characteristics
Chemical composition and Nutritive value
• Proximate Analysis: major nutrients in the foods like
moisture, protein, fat, ash, crude fiber and carbohydrate
• Bioactive compounds like flavonoids, caffeine,
carotenoids, phytosterols, phytoestrogens,
polyphenols, anthocyanins
• Vitamins: like C, B1, B2, B12, A, D, E, K

• Reference procedures: Association of Official

Analytical Chemists (AOAC).
Importance of Food Analysis
 Detection of adulteration.
 Compliance within legal and
prescribed manufacturing limits.
 Control the quality of raw materials.
 Control of processed foodstuffs.
 Detect deterioration of foodstuffs on storage.
 Measure the nutritive value of foodstuffs.
 Detect additives and contamination
 Microbial Quality
Two main microbiological criteria
1) food safety criteria for important foodborne
bacteria, their toxins and metabolites, such as
Salmonella, Clostridium botulinum, Listeria
monocytogenes, Enterobacter sakazakii,
staphylococcal enterotoxins and histamine
and
2) process hygiene criteria to indicate that
required sanitation is achieved during food
processing.
 Summary
Food Quality is your business!
Socrates said: “Know thyself!”
Customers say, “Know your product!”

Bottom Line:
Utilize quantitative tests to improve your
product and satisfy your customers.