The Meaning of Sensory and Consumer Terminology

Texture vocabulary is essential for evaluating texture and understanding its perception. The semantic classification for the texture terms is similar across countries and cultures being based on two main dimensions: food structural properties and the point of consumption at which it is perceived. However, the use and understanding of terms differs among individuals and cultures, making it difficult to achieve exact translations. For many years, food texture research has been based on analytical descriptors, precisely defined for a consistent understanding across trained panels. In the recent years, advances in sensory evaluation methods allow characterising texture by consumers using their own vocabulary to provide insights into how different consumers perceive and describe the same sensation.