CONSUMER AWARENESS OF AND ATTITUDES TO FOOD TEXTURE

Abstract Although its awareness appears to be present on a subconscious level, texture plays a very essential role in determining people's feelings about foods. Intensity of flavor, socially and culturally learned expectations, psychological and physiological factors, sex, socio-economic class, image of a food, and eating occasions influence awareness of and attitudes to texture among adult consumers. Texture awareness is increased when expectations are violated, associations are made with non-food items, or unpleasant mouth sensations are experienced. Textural qualities are often linked with whole-someness and excellence of food preparation.     

CONSUMER AWARENESS OF TEXTURE IN MEDICINES

The word-association technique was used to evaluate public awareness of texture in medicines. The results indicated that texture is an important attribute of medicines. The degree of association with texture varied with the type of medicine. Externally used semi-solid dosage forms, such as creams, pastes and ointments, and also viscous materials, such as medicinal syrups, elicited more texture responses than the other types of medicines. The largest percentage of responses belonged to a ‘visual aspects’ category, while texture responses were the second largest group.     

CONSUMER AWARENESS OF TEXTURE AND OF OTHER FOOD ATTRIBUTES, II

Abstract. A word association test given to one hundred and fifty respondents drawn from three geographic locations and representing a sample balanced with respect to socio-economic class, sex, and age confirmed the results of a previous test ( Food Technol. 27, 74, 1963) conducted with one hundred General Foods employees. Frequency of free associations indicated that texture is a discernible characteristic of foods and that, in general, its awareness equals that of flavor. Women and people in higher economic brackets showed a higher degree of texture awareness.     

CONSUMER AWARENESS OF AND ATTITUDES TO FOOD TEXTURE II. Children and Teenagers

A discussion of children’s and teenagers’ attitudes to food texture is presented based on published data relative to growth and development and on information obtained from original consumer interviews. It is pointed out that, in this population group, physiological factors appear to be dominant in shaping attitudes to texture. These are modified by psychological, social, cultural, and other factors in the adult consumer. With both children and teenagers, texture is an important attribute of foods influencing their likes and dislikes. In the young child, attitudes to food texture follow the developmental sequence of oral functions, and textures are rejected which are difficult to manipulate in the mouth at a particular stage of physical development. The high degree of texture awareness of teenagers may possibly surpass that of adults. Teenagers also appear to have a better understanding of the concept of texture suggesting that this attribute may assume greater importance with the oncoming generation of adult consumers.     

CONSUMER ATTITUDES AND PERCEPTIONS TOWARDS MICROBIAL FOOD SAFETY IN THE DOMESTIC KITCHEN

The domestic kitchen is an important point of origin for foodborne disease and food safety communication strategies are required to improve food-handling behaviors in the home. A key to the design of effective strategies is an understanding of factors that influence food safety behaviors. Attitudes may influence food safety behaviors and therefore, attitude determination towards food safety in the domestic kitchen is important for development of targeted food safety communication strategies.
A questionnaire was administered to consumers (n = 100) representing a cross-section of the population of Cardiff, South Wales. Results showed that attitudes towards implementation of key food safety behaviors including cross contamination, cooking and storage were positive, however, attitudes towards other practices, for example cooling, were negative. Significant correlations (P < 0.05) between specific attitudinal responses and respondent demographics were identified, indicating that targeted strategies may be required for different groups of consumers. Results of this study will be discussed within the context of previous consumer food safety research, optimistic-bias and development of communication strategies designed to raise awareness of food safety issues and bring about behavioral improvement.     

THE INTERRELATIONSHIP BETWEEN PERCEIVED KNOWLEDGE, CONTROL AND RISK ASSOCIATED WITH A RANGE OF FOOD-RELATED HAZARDS TARGETED AT THE INDIVIDUAL, OTHER PEOPLE AND SOCIETY

The relationship between perceived risk, perceived control and perceived knowledge was investigated for a range of food related hazards. One hundred and eighty six questionnaires were completed; these were designed to assess perceived risk for a range of food related hazards at three levels of risk "target"— personal risk, risk for other people, and risk for society. Additional questions about perceived control and perceived knowledge for the potential hazards were also asked.
Results indicated that individuals perceived personal risk to be lower than for either other people or society, independent of the hazard characteristics, in line with the theory of optimistic bias. Personal control tended to be seen as greater for the self than for other people, for those hazards where personal control was conceptually feasible. Perceived control for societal hazards was conferred onto society. Individuals thought that personal knowledge for a given hazard was greater than for other people. No direct relationship between perceived control and perceived risk was found, although there was a direct relationship between perceived knowledge and perceived control.
The results are discussed within the framework of optimistic bias and illusion of control. It is concluded that the mechanism for such effects is dependent on the perceived characteristics of the potential hazard itself.
Optimistic bias and greater perceived knowledge about potential hazards may explain the failure of public information campaigns; individuals will assume that they are invulnerable to hazards, and that information is directed at individuals less knowledgeable than themselves.     

香蕉营养保健价值及综合利用

我国香蕉资源丰富,但不耐贮藏,采后损失严重,卖蕉难问题突出.通过进行香蕉深加工与综合利用可使其多倍增值,发展潜力很大.本文介绍了不同产地香蕉的营养价值、保健功能以及香蕉资源的开发与利用的思路,及发展香蕉深加工食品应注意的问题.     

国内外织物抗菌卫生整理的进展

介绍了国内外近20年来抗菌卫生整理、抗菌性化合物的概况，抗菌卫生整理技术出现了抗菌漂白—浴法、抗菌染色—浴法等新工艺以及抗菌阻燃、抗菌防静电防污、抗菌拒水拒油等多功能产品，其中，北京洁尔爽高科技有限公司的抗菌整理剂已达国际领先水平。     

CONSUMER FOOD SAFETY KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICES

Consumer knowledge of safe handling guidelines and their reported practices assessed by a mail survey indicated consumers considered themselves informed about food safety, and most reported taking action to minimize risk from potential hazards. However, most responses were related to nutritional changes, and 20% indicated they did not know how to reduce risks from microbiological hazards. Consumers were knowledgeable about appropriate safeguards in selection and cooking specific foods, however mistakes were reported in temperature control and handling leftovers. Consumer Reports, university scientists, health professionals and science magazines were considered ihe most reliable source of food safety information. Industry advertisement appears to raise consumer concern in some areas. Educational intervention should emphasize the importance of temperature control and sanitation rather than taste to determine safety. Consumers should receive information about protective technologies like heat and irradiation pasteurization.     

CONSUMER PREFERENCE AND PROPERTIES OF RAW AND COOKED MILLED RICE

Consumer preference tests for raw and cooked rices were run on representative consumers 16 years and older in a selected Philippine village. For four sets of samples, major criteria for selecting raw milled rice were grain whiteness and hardness, and aroma and flavor for boiled rice. Actual preference ranks suggested partiality to white raw rice and low-amylose, intermediate-amylose and high-amylose boiled rice in order of decreasing preference. Soft texture due to low amylose content probably contributed to better flavor of boiled rice.
Selection criteria for one set of waxy rices were aroma and whole, big grains for raw rice, and aroma and cohesiveness for rice cake suman sa antala . Properties disliked in suman were flakiness, and coarse, hard, and soft textures. Among five low-gelatinization temperature, waxy milled rices, the traditional, aromatic, coarse-grained Malagkit Sungsong was preferred over newer rices with less aroma and with longer grains in both raw and suman forms.     

TASTE PERCEPTION, FOOD QUALITY AND CONSUMER ACCEPTANCE

Consumer acceptance is a more measurable parameter than the ill defined concept of quality. Thus, it is better to consider how the taste, and indeed all the sensory characteristics, of foods can be manipulated to improve consumer acceptance. If tastes are to be manipulated, it is necessary to understand something about taste mechanisms so that the researcher can avoid the all too common artifacts and biases involved in gustatory measurement. Discussed here are some aspects of sensory information processing in the brain, the problems of crosssensory confusion, sensory adaptation and taste categorization.     

IRISH AND EUROPEAN CONSUMER VIEWS ON FOOD SAFETY

Results from two consumer surveys are presented. In the first, a EU FAIR (European Union Food, Agriculture and Industrial Research Programme), supported project, three-thousand consumers (500 in each of six countries, Germany, Italy, Britain, Spain, Sweden and Ireland) were surveyed in March 1997 on their attitudes to the quality and safety of three meats, beef, pork and chicken. This paper deals with the safety aspects of the survey. Many consumers in all six countries said they were eating less beef and more chicken. Overall, the Spanish and Irish appeared to be the most concerned about the safety of meat, the British were somewhat less concerned. While many were confident that the food in shops is safe, there was a sizeable minority who believed the contrary. When looking for information on the safety of meat, butchers, whether independent or in supermarkets, are the group most trusted by consumers. In terms of consumer concerns, about 60 percent of beef consumers were very concerned about hormones, BSE (Bovine Spongiform encephalopathy), antibiotics and bacteria. Pork consumers had similar levels of concern as beef consumers about bacteria, antibiotics and hormones. For chicken there was a higher level of concern about bacteria (Salmonella) (68% were very concerned) and similar levels of concern to pork and beef for the other issues. Generally, fat was the issue of least concern for all three meats. Freshness was considered to be relatively the most helpful of 7 factors used for assessing safety of meat. The country of origin and what the animal was fed were also considered to be relatively helpful. Factors considered to be relatively less helpful were price and the name of the producer. In the second study, over 1200 pre-leaving certificate Irish school children participated in autumn 1996 in a national survey assessing young people's attitudes to meat. Half of the respondents agreed with the view that eating beef means increasing the risk of getting CJD (Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease). Those who agreed were more likely to be less frequent eaters of beef and to have reduced their meat consumption in the post-BSE period. It was found also that females were more likely to eat less meat than males and to have reduced beef consumption. The implications of some of the findings of these two surveys are discussed.     

NATIONAL CONSUMER RETAIL BEEF STUDY: INTERACTION OF TRIM LEVEL, PRICE AND GRADE ON CONSUMER ACCEPTANCE OF BEEF STEAKS AND ROASTS

Consumers in San Francisco, California and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA were asked to purchase, in simulated retail markets, beef retail cuts of different grades, Choice versus Select (equivalent to Good), or of different trim levels, Regular Trim (no more than 13 mm of external fat; Philadelphia only), Extra Trim (no more than 8 mm of external fat) or Super Trim (no external fat), all priced at Parity or Premium (Parity plus 10%) prices. Consumers in Philadelphia purchased significantly more Extra Trim and Super Trim steaks and roasts than Regular Trim. At the time of purchase, consumers in both cities could not detect the visual differences in Choice versus Select, but upon eating them found that Choice cuts were better tasting, but also fatter, and that Select cuts were leaner, but had problems with taste and texture. Both Choice and Select were rated high for consumer acceptance, but for different reasons, taste for Choice, leanness for Select.     

CONSUMER FOOD SAFETY CONCERNS AND INTEREST IN PESTICIDE-RELATED INFORMATION

Consumer food safety concerns and interest in pesticide related information was measured by personal interviews with 479 consumers in 14 counties in California. Although concern about pesticide safety was noted by almost half of the respondents, nutritional considerations had the greatest impact on food selection criteria. Of those who volunteered pesticide safety concerns, 15% indicated they sought organic produce and 13% said they avoided or reduced produce purchases. In addition to information about the human health effects of pesticide use, consumers expressed high interest in the environmental effects of pesticide use. Consumers currently use television and newspapers as information sources and prefer these to other sources.