Survival Analysis Applied to Sensory Shelf Life of Yogurts–II: Spanish Formulations

Sensory shelf lives of commercial Spanish yogurts stored at 10 °C were studied. Yogurts were strawberry flavored and differed in fat content (free and whole‐fat) and consistency (stirred and set‐style). Yogurts were tested between 0 and 90 d of storage by consumers who expressed acceptance or rejection of each sample and measured overall and attribute acceptability on a 9‐point hedonic scale. Survival analysis statistics were used to estimate sensory shelf lives. Considering 25% of consumers rejecting the product, shelf lives varied from 38 to 69 d, depending on the composition, so if useful life were to be established using sensory criteria, a single shelf life for yogurt would not appear to be very appropriate. A log‐linear model and a direct quantile comparison formula were introduced to analyze the effect of formulation on rejection time distributions and shelf life values, respectively. Fat‐free yogurts had shorter shelf lives than whole‐fat yogurts. Acceptability of yogurts measured on a 9‐point hedonic scale varied less than percentage rejection over the storage times.