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The sensory profile and consumer acceptance of Hibiscus sabdariffa L. drink (commercial and traditional) made from infusions of red calices of either local or Sudanese origin (pure or mixed) and either as syrup or infusion was explored. The acceptability of the drink was tested by European (n=60) and African consumers (n=100) in Dakar. Three classes of behaviour from the consumers were identified. There were a) those who preferred syrup (syrup likers; 43% of consumers) b) those who prefer infusions (infusion likers; 36% of consumers) and c) those who preferred all of the samples (indifferent likers; 21% of consumers). There were no differences in clusters in terms of Europeans or Africans percentages. However European consumers were more likely to be syrup likers, consume hibiscus drink the least often and purchase hibiscus infusion in bottles. Africans consumers were more likely to prefer infusion, consume hibiscus drink more frequently and purchase it in sachets. Both groups preferred to purchase natural hibiscus drink rather than flavoured ones. The sensory characteristics important to each group of consumers differed. For the indifferent likers, they were the least discerning consumers and their acceptance did not correlate with any of the sensory attributes. They will also be open to a wide variety of reengineered products. The syrup likers are more discerning and prefer syrup that are sweet and without irritant, bitter or acidic taste. Red colour was not considered to be important. The most discerning consumers were the infusion likers. They preferred hibiscus drinks that are red in colour, have the characteristic of an infusion (concentration) and have the taste and odour characteristic of hibiscus drink. (Texte intégral)

This work is a baseline study on the cross cultural differences between consumers of European and African origin for Hibiscus drinks that took place before the reengineering phase. The consumer acceptance of Hibiscus sabdariffa L. drink made from red calices of either local (Ordinary) or Sudanese origin (pure or mixed) and either as syrup or a infusion was explored. The acceptability of the drink was tested by European and African consumers in Dakar, Senegal. There were no differences between consumers of African and European origin in terms of clusters of 'liking'. However European consumers were more likely to be syrup likers, consume Hibiscus drinks the least often and purchase Hibiscus juice in bottles. Africans consumers were more likely to prefer juice, consume Hibiscus drinks more frequently and purchase it in sachets. (Texte intégral)

The consumption of this drink is widespread in Africa and Asia, as far as we know little appears to have been published about European consumers' acceptance, when the drink is largely unknown in Europe. In order to achieve product acceptance followed by successful market introduction in Europe, it is of prime importance to gain insight into the factors determining consumers' food choice. Understanding how consumers perceive food products is critical for food companies. This information is essential for the development and marketing of new products, the reformulation of existing ones, the optimization of manufacturing processes and the establishment of specifications in quality control programs. One of the most novel methodologies that has been developed for gathering information about consumers' perception of the sensory characteristics of food products is the use of check-all-that-apply questions (CATA). CATA questions consist of a list of words or phrases from which respondents select all the words they consider appropriate to describe a product. This can result in a simpler and more valid approach to gathering information about consumers' perception that includes both their sensory and hedonic impression. The aim of the present work was to apply CATA questions to compare consumer perception in the development of Hibiscus sabdariffa L. drink products between European countries, namely Portugal, United Kingdom and France. Four traditional samples (n=4) brought from Senegal were tested, two directly as commercial products - viz. 1 commercial syrup and 1 commercial instantaneous juice and two produced according to traditional approaches from calices. Consumer's studies were performed in Oporto, Porto - Portugal, with 100 people from two Portuguese Catholic University Campuses, in Chatham, United Kingdom, with 120 people from the University of Greenwich and in Montpellier, France with 120 people from two canteens at the CIRAD Campus (La Recherche Agronomique pour le Développment) viz. - Baillarguet and Lavallete. Consumers were asked to score their overall liking and to answer a CATA questionnaire that included 28 sensory and hedonic terms. Significant differences were found in the frequencies in which CATA terms were used for describing the four samples in each European country under study, suggesting that this methodology was able to detect differences in consumer's perception of the drinks. CATA methodology allows establishing a European consumer profile of Hibiscus sabdariffa L. Drinks. (Texte intégral)

The sensory profiles and acceptability of Akpan, Gowe, Akpan and Kishk Sa'eedi were tested using a focus group discussion, a quantitative descriptive panel and consumer panels comprising African and/or European consumers as indicated in the table below. It should be noted that consumer testing of Kishk Sa'eedi was delayed because of the current social unrest in Egypt. The number of consumers interviewed by product and country is summarised in the table below. Consumer Class (and number): Country Benin Product Akpan African: 103Non-African74 Country Ghana Product Kenkey African: 110 Non-African90 Country Benin Product Gowe African: 141Non-African- Country Egypt Product Kishk Sa' eedi : African- Non-African- Sensory testing indicated that for each product, the sensory profiles widely differed. This was influenced by the raw material (Kenkey, Gowe, Akpan, KS), process (Kenkey, Akpan and KS) and addition of sugar/milk (Akpan and Gowe). The products also differed according to acceptance. Akpan - African and non-African consumers behaved differently with respect to acceptability. Europeans generally had a lower acceptability of Akpan products compared to Africans. This was probably due to the fact that most Europeans were not familiar with the product since when Europeans did report consuming Akpan, there were no differences in acceptability. Consumers' acceptance was significantly associated with fermented odour and milky taste. African consumers were more sensitive to the thick/concentrated texture and cereal taste whilst Europeans were more positively influenced by sweet taste but negatively by acidic taste. Kenkey – African and non-African consumers differed in acceptance of Kenkey. Non- African consumers mostly preferred the white kenkey and to a lesser extent banku. Ghanaian consumers generally liked all of the samples or preferred banku. Sensory attributes important for the white likers were whitish colour, fruity odour, smooth and non-sticky texture, a less sour product without a pronounced fermented odour, and a bland taste. Salty taste correlated significantly with acceptance for the banku likers, Gowe - The commonly consumed gowe were sensorially distinct products with differences between the sorghum and maize samples of gowe, but no significant difference was noted with sugar was added. Regarding consumer testing, three distinct patterns of consumer acceptability were observed, which were grouped as 'Sugary Gowe likers' or “Natural sorghum Gowe dislikers” (63.1%) followed by 'Sugary sorghum Gowe likers' (20.6%) and 'Indifferent Gowe likers' (16.3%). Saccharified malted and no-malted sorghum Gowe without sugar were the least preferred. Kishk Sa'eedi (KS) has distinct sensory attributes and variation. Consumer acceptance has still to be completed. The conclusions for reengineering are as follows: Akpan – there are two options being products suited to a) Akpan from Maize Ogi containing Sugar and Milk (OMsm) or b) Akpan from Ogi Sorghum containing Sugar and Milk (OSsm). However, since they are representative of classes of akpan type, any of these two classes could be suited for the reengineering. That is the case of OMs or OSs membership of OMsm and OSsm respectively. Kenkey - Two products should be considered, one adapted to both the European and the Ghanaian consumer 'white likers' and the second adapted to only the Ghanaian consumer 'all likers and 'banku likers'. Important sensory attributes which should guide re-engineering of the first product are whitish colour, fruity odour, smooth and nonsticky texture, a mildly sour product, and a bland taste. This may be achieved by a combination of processing factors including dehulling of maize kernels, use of mixed lactic acid bacteria/yeast starter culture containing high concentration of yeasts cells (for fruity odour), reduced fermentation period (to reduce sourness and fermented odour) and elimination of the aflata step (to reduce sticky texture). The second product should be a refinement of Ga/Fanti Kenkey and should also focus on improved packaging. Gowe - Gowe made from saccharified malted sorghum with sugar (SSaSFs) was the most accepted and appears to be the most promising for reengineering. KS – the consumer testing will take place later in 2012 These findings should be considered in combination with other AFTER deliverables relating to market and regulatory issues and technical feasibility.

The sensory profile and consumer acceptance of Lanhouin, a traditional salted fermented fish made from two types of fish (king fish and cassava fish) and three different fermentation processes (aerobic, semi aerobic and anaerobic condition) were explored. Traditional Lanhouin were sensorially different, with king fish Lanhouin having the highest smell (score of putrid odour) and cassava fish Lanhouin being the whitish. Three classes of consumers' behaviour essentially, those who like all the Lanhouin samples (Lanhouin likers; 35 % of consumers), those who does not prefer king fish Lanhouin from anaerobic fermentation (Lanhouin KFAN dislikers; 37 %) and those who does not like cassava fish Lanhouin from aerobic fermentation (Lanhouin CFA dislikers; 28 %) were identified. Consumers' acceptance was significantly associated with size of fish, whitish colour, dried fish odour and ammoniacal odour. Considering consumers' preference, Lanhouin from king fish with semi aerobic fermentation and Lanhouin from cassava fish (except for aerobic fermentation) were more accepted and could be interesting for reengineering. The similarity in tasting attributes for cassava fish and king fish when used for cooked rice will be helpful to design the form in which Lanhouin can be marketed for large acceptance Considering Kong, no prior work has explored sensory tasting. Four samples were produced for the sensory test: Kong was smoked with wood only and or with wood/coconut. For the sensory evaluation, smoked kong only and smoked kong in sauce and were scored by a semitrained sensory panel. Then, 109 consumers were interviewed. Acceptability was only evaluated on smoked kong. The results show that all four samples were quite distinctive from each other but not when in sauce. Most of the Kong products were on average acceptable but moist kong had a better acceptability than dried kong samples submitted to the same processes of smoking. Consumers were segmented into two three groups as: “indifferent likers” (27%), “dry kong dislikers” (15%), and “dry Kong less preferred” (59%). Clusters really differed in terms of professional activity in fish sector but did not significantly differ in the frequency of consumption. Therefore it appears that, smoked Kong is a main product of consumption in the Senegalese market. Since more than 50% of consumers consumed smoked Kong at least once a week, it appears that Kong is a main product of consumption with a strong potential for the Senegalese market but also for the international market.

Sensory evaluation and consumer testing of Hibiscus, Baobab and Jaabi (Yaabande) was undertaken with African and EU consumers in Senegal and Cameroon. The sensory profile and consumer acceptance of Bissap (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) drink (commercial and traditional) made from infusions of red calices of either local or Sudanese origin, pure or mixed, and either as syrup or a juice (infusion) was explored. There were significant correlations between the sensory perceptions of the drink by panellists. The acceptability of the drink was tested by two consumer groups: Europeans (n=60) and Africans (n=100) in Dakar. Three classes of behaviour from the consumers were identified. There were a) those who preferred syrup (syrup likers; 43% of consumers) b) those who prefer juices (juice likers; 36% of consumers) and c) those who preferred all of the samples (indifferent likers; 21% of consumers). The liking by African and EU consumers was similar but European consumers were more likely to prefer syrup, consume bissap the least often and purchase bissap juice in bottles. African consumers were more likely to prefer juice, consume bissap more frequently and purchase it in sachets. Both groups preferred to purchase natural bissap drinks rather than ones with added flavour. The sensory characteristics important to each class of consumers differed. There were significant correlations between acceptability, bissap taste for the cluster of the group of the juice likers. There were significant correlations between acceptability, sweet taste, acidic taste for the syrup likers. The study shows that the distinctions between the acceptability groups are very clear from a sensory perspective. The market study should take these preference groups into account when launching Hibiscus drinks on a new market. The sensory profile of seven samples of bouye (baobab) drinks (syrup and juice) was evaluated by 17 panellists. Consumer testing was investigated at four different locations in Dakar using the central location metho. These were the following: ESP high school (n=32); Grand Yoff (n=36), Guediawaye (n=12), and Gueule Tapée (n=26) areas. The acceptability of the drink was tested by African consumers (mainly Senegalese) (n=104) in Dakar who tested five different drinks from the seven first samples. A cluster analysis demonstrated that consumers behave differently with respect to acceptability. Three classes of behaviour from the consumers were identified. There were a) those who clearly preferred the juice from FWS (27% of consumers) b) those who preferred all of the samples (indifferent likers) (31% of consumers), c) those who liked the juices but not the syrups (juice likers) (42% of consumers). With respect to acceptance, the reengineering approach appears to have two options being products suited to a) milk taste or b) taste and odour characteristic of baobab with a good concentration for the two products. The reengineering approach should also explore ways to increase the shelf life with optimum quality regarding the sensory attributes and consumer acceptance. Optimizing scales for pasteurization shall be conducted in order to have a product without caramel smell. Sensory profile and consumer acceptability was undertaken for Jaabi, a wild fruit commonly used in savannah region of Africa, and its processed product, a cake locally called: Yaabande. The study took in the northern part of Cameroon through collection of two varieties of Jaabi (Dakamji and Lamouji) from four origins (Garoua, Maroua, Mokolo, Mora), and processed Yaabande from these samples, using three baking techniques (Sun baking, vapour cooking, under earth stewing). Sensory and consumers tests indicated that the taste of the products constitutes the main criteria for consuming the products. The Dakamji variety of Jaabi appeared more homogenous whatever the origin than the Lamouji variety. Meanwhile, all samples were acceptable at comparable level corresponding to pleasant character. With respect to acceptance, the main option of reengineering approach is based on standardisation of process procedures in order to guarantee the taste of the products. Inclusion of therapeutic aspects of the products may be coupled to this option for market development.