Emotions generated by meat and other food products in women

Low-sugar egg-based dessert (sweet egg yolk drops): Characterization, consumer acceptance and driver of liking

The addition of sweeteners and fructooligosaccharides (FOS) to partially reduced-sugar syrup allows for the development of high-sugar egg-based desserts, which are a healthier alternative with good consumer acceptance. This study aimed to analyze the effects of different sweeteners and sugar reductions on physicochemical properties, consumer liking, and emotional responses of sweet egg yolk drops. Five experimental desserts were prepared: four with 25 % low-calorie sweeteners (erythritol, mannitol, sorbitol, and tagatose) combined with 25 % FOS in reduced-sugar syrup (50 %), and one as a control (full-sugar formulation). Substitution of erythritol (E50), mannitol (M50), and tagatose (T50) in the syrup significantly decreased the quality of the desserts. This implies a decrease in the sensory properties, leading to negative emotional responses among consumers. However, the application of external preference mapping (EPM) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA) revealed that two of the four commercial desserts and one control sample (F100) included sorbitol desserts (S50). Desserts in this group that are related to specific attributes as drivers of liking, such as appearance, yellowness, sweetness, cohesiveness, and juiciness evoke positive emotional responses in consumers ('Auspicious', 'Glad', 'Attractive', 'Secure', 'Loving', 'Natural'). Therefore, sorbitol and FOS are suitable sweeteners in reduced-sugar syrups for producing egg-based desserts with reduced calories and improved consumer acceptance. This study thus paves the way for the development of healthy dessert products.

Consumption of rabbit meat in Brazil: Potential and limitations

Rabbit production is still small in Brazil and organization of its production chain is therefore necessary. The aim of this study was to investigate consumer perceptions of rabbit meat in the country. An online survey was conducted with 2614 participants. The responses were analyzed using the nonparametric Mann-Whitney U test. The survey revealed that the greatest acceptance of rabbit meat occurred in the population of adult men with a higher income and educational level who live in capital cities. Regional differences exist in Brazil. Consumption is more consolidated in the south region. The main limiting factor for rabbit meat consumption is the unavailability of the product. The limited availability of rabbit meat results in low consumption. Producers ensuring a regular supply of rabbit meat and verticalization by the industry are essential. These proposed actions were found to be even more important than demystify the image of the rabbit as a pet.

Rabbit meat: valuable nutrition or too-cute-to-eat?

Rabbit meat is a component of traditional diets, often incorporated into iconic dishes of regional cuisine. Its consumption can be traced back to the ancient civilisations of the Mediterranean and beyond, well into the Palaeolithic era. Even though it has been representing considerable nutritional and cultural value for millennia, a decline in consumption is now noticeable. Specific categorial dynamics are at play, related to the various superimposed roles of rabbits as livestock, game, pests, laboratory animals and pets. Their perceived cuteness in particular can lead to emotional responses that are hard to reconcile with the sensitivities of the post-domestic paradigm. Such effects compromise the acceptability of rabbit meat in contemporary Western societies that are typified by problematic human-animal interactions and a disconnect from the food chain. Young and urban populations in particular now seem to have difficulties facing the notion that food production requires the killing of animals. As a result, a traditional food source risks becoming irrelevant despite its high nutritional value and potential for sustainable meat production, due to reasons that are emotive rather than rational.

Rabbit meat: valuable nutrition or too-cute-to-eat?

Rabbit meat is a component of traditional diets, often incorporated into iconic dishes of regional cuisine. Its consumption can be traced back to the ancient civilisations of the Mediterranean and beyond, well into the Palaeolithic era. Even though it has been representing considerable nutritional and cultural value for millennia, a decline in consumption is now noticeable. Specific categorial dynamics are at play, related to the various superimposed roles of rabbits as livestock, game, pests, laboratory animals and pets. Their perceived cuteness in particular can lead to emotional responses that are hard to reconcile with the sensitivities of the post-domestic paradigm. Such effects compromise the acceptability of rabbit meat in contemporary Western societies that are typified by problematic human-animal interactions and a disconnect from the food chain. Young and urban populations in particular now seem to have difficulties facing the notion that food production requires the killing of animals. As a result, a traditional food source risks becoming irrelevant despite its high nutritional value and potential for sustainable meat production, due to reasons that are emotive rather than rational.

Meat disgust is negatively associated with meat intake - Evidence from a cross-sectional and longitudinal study

Meat consumption is increasingly seen as unsustainable, unhealthy, and unethical. Understanding what factors help people reduce their meat intake is urgently needed. One such factor is meat disgust, a feeling reported by many vegetarians, and which could be a promising basis for meat reduction interventions. However, meat disgust and its impact on meat consumption is poorly understood. We examined meat disgust and its role in vegetarianism and reducing meat intake in a cross-sectional and longitudinal online study. We measured self-reported meat consumption, meat disgust (by self-report and Implicit Association Test), meat liking, self-control, and disgust sensitivity in N = 711 adults (57% omnivores, 28% flexitarians, 15% vegetarians) recruited from a community cohort. Results showed that 73% of vegetarians can be classified as 'meat disgusted', and that meat disgust predicted meat intake better than self-control in omnivores and flexitarians at baseline. Following up a sub-sample of participants (N = 197) after six months revealed that changes in meat intake over time were also associated with changes in meat disgust. This is the first study to quantify the impact of meat disgust on (changes in) meat consumption and its prevalence in the vegetarian and the general population. Our findings advance research into meat disgust and encourage the development of disgust-based interventions to reduce meat intake.

Consumer-Led Adaptation of the EsSense Profile® for Herbal Infusions

This work aimed to adapt the EsSense Profile^® emotions list to the discrimination of herbal infusions, aiming to evaluate the effect of harvesting conditions on the emotional profile. A panel of 100 consumers evaluated eight organic infusions: lemon verbena, peppermint, lemon thyme, lemongrass, chamomile, lemon balm, globe amaranth and tutsan, using a check-all-that-apply (CATA) ballot with the original EsSense Profile^®. A set of criteria was applied to get a discriminant list. First, the terms with low discriminant power and with a frequency mention below 35% were removed. Two focus groups were also performed to evaluate the applicability of the questionnaire. The content analysis of focus groups suggests the removal of the terms good and pleasant, recognized as sensory attributes. Six additional terms were removed, considered to be too similar to other existing emotion terms. Changes in the questionnaire, resulting in a list of 24 emotion terms for the evaluation of selected herbal infusions, were able to discriminate beyond overall liking. When comparing finer differences between plants harvested under different conditions, differences were identified for lemon verbena infusions, yielding the mechanical cut of plant tips as the one leading to a more appealing evoked emotions profile.

Rabbit meat in the east of Algeria: motivation and obstacles to consumption

<p>In Algeria, rabbit meat consumption is insufficiently anchored in culinary traditions compared to other types of meat that are widely consumed, namely sheep and chicken. The purpose of this research is to investigate the influence of sociogeographic variables, both intrinsic and extrinsic quality cues, on consumption frequency, purchasing decision, motivations and the main deterrents to rabbit meat consumption. A survey is conducted with 360 consumers across 15 <em>wilayas</em> (districts) in Eastern Algeria. The results help us draw a conclusion that rabbit meat is consumed in all surveyed <em>wilayas</em> with a low frequency of consumption for the majority of respondents (79%). On the one hand, the causes of consumption are mainly: good taste (59%) and nutritional value (27%). On the other hand, the limiting factors are different: scarcity of rabbit meat on the market (42%), price (22%), eating habits (17%), lack of information on nutritional value (13%), bad taste (3%) and its resemblance to cat meat (3%). Regarding purchasing criteria, tenderness (58%) and freshness (14%) were chosen by most consumers. Although most consumers recognise the nutritional benefits of rabbit meat, it is poorly ranked in the choice of its consumers, placing it fourth after sheep, beef and poultry. Cross tabulation results show that gender, employment status and geographical areas are three variables that significantly affect the consumer’s perception and behaviour towards rabbit meat. This study is the first to analyse the Algerian consumer profile and sheds light on factors encouraging and hindering rabbit meat consumption.</p>

Impact of different chicken meat production systems on consumers' purchase perception

1. The objective of this study was to evaluate specific sensory attributes of chicken meat from different production systems to evaluate the emotional responses related to information available on the packages, as well as to investigate consumers' perceptions regarding this information.2. The survey was conducted using the Temporal Dominance of Sensations analysis, which identified differences in taste and texture between samples belonging to the organic, conventional and natural systems.3. The specific emotional lexicon for chicken meat, defined by the consumers through the EmoSemio questionnaire, provided a list of positive emotions for packages that indicated some type of information about the rearing or feeding system.4. The qualitative data obtained using the Attitude Questionnaire demonstrated that packaging and labelling are not self-explanatory, posing more doubts for the consumer at the time of purchase. It was shown that packaging and labelling were extrinsic attributes that influenced the evaluation and acceptability of products. Besides that, consumers were interested in buying products that attest to animal welfare, provided that the price is attractive.5. Poultry companies can have a greater chance of making their products more attractive if they learn more about the attitude and expectations of the consumer in relation to the products, as well as the importance of the animal welfare attributes that are communicated.

Consumer Moral Dilemma in the Choice of Animal-Friendly Meat Products

More and more consumers, at least in Western developed countries, are attentive to the sustainability aspects of their food, one of which concerns animal welfare. The conflict of harming an animal for the joy of eating meat causes a moral dilemma, affecting consumers’ reactions to, and choices of, animal-friendly products. This systematic review identified 86 studies from Scopus and Web of Science. The review outlines: (1) What are the personal antecedents among consumers regarding moral conflicts?; (2) In what situation do moral conflicts occur in consumer food choice?; (3) How do consumers emotionally experience the moral dilemma?; (4) How do consumers resolve moral conflicts over animal products? Researchers have studied personal factors and situational factors that arouse consumers’ moral dilemma and how the dilemma is solved, during which emotions and dissonance come into play. When synthesizing these findings into a comprehensive model, we notice that the current research is lacking on how personal factors change and interact with situations, which limits the understanding of the real-life context of consumers’ moral dilemma as well as their choices of animal-friendly products. More in-depth studies are needed to find situational factors that contribute to this complex psychological process.

Consumer behaviour related to rabbit meat as functional food

<p>Rabbit is one of the most versatile livestock species, responding successfully to bio-economic principles, which promote a clever use of resources and their conversion into added value products, such as functional foods (FFs). The excellent nutritive and dietetic properties of rabbit meat justify granting it the attributes of FFs. Based on the premise that it is the consumer who ultimately decides what kind of meat to buy, a consumer focus should be a core factor in private or public meat sector strategies. Following this assumption, the aim of this study is to contribute to understanding Romanian consumer behaviour related to rabbit meat as a functional food and to provide information on how to better market rabbit meat as FF in the domestic market. As far as the authors know, this study is the first one to assess and report on Romanian consumer perceptions, knowledge and behaviours related to rabbit meat. Consequently, the variables investigated reflect rabbit meat consumption habits. They also reveal preferences related to the acquisition of rabbit meat, perceptions on future rabbit meat consumption, perceptions of rabbit meat characteristics, perceptions of rabbit meat main characteristics compared to other types of meat, and rabbit meat consumption deterrents. The survey results show that rabbit meat is perceived as lean and low cholesterol, healthier and tastier than other meats, but more expensive, that its consumption is low, being 2.2 times lower than chicken and 1.8 times lower than pork, and that 29.6% of people surveyed have never eaten rabbit meat. The findings ascertain that the understanding of Romanian consumer behaviour related to rabbit meat as FF is an optimal tool for changing behaviour patterns towards a more sustainable market. The transfer of this knowledge towards marketers mainly focusing on how to increase consumer satisfaction for FFs, especially meat, is the leverage for designing successful businesses regarding market re-orientation, development or even reduction of health cost.</p>

Development of emotion lexicons to describe chocolate using the Check-All-That-Apply (CATA) methodology across Asian and Western groups

Emotion-based terms selected by Asians and Westerners were analyzed to develop lexicons associated with chocolate consumption. Hence, an online-based questionnaire (Study 1: N = 206; 51% Asians, 49% Westerners) and a chocolate (milk and dark) tasting session (Study 2: N = 75; 52% Asians, 48% westerners) were conducted to assess emotion terms related to chocolate consumption using Check-All-That-Apply methodology. Emotional satisfaction was the main reason for chocolate consumption. Furthermore, selection of emotional terms was different between cultures and gender. For both studies (1 and 2), flavor of chocolate was the most important factor that determined purchase intention. For Study 2, milk and dark chocolate evoked different emotion terms for participants. The lexicon developed for milk chocolate had similar emotion terms compared to the Study 1 lexicon (online). Developing an emotion lexicon using an online survey could provide a reduced lexicon compared to lexicons generated during the tasting session and can be used as a fast-screening method to develop simplified emotion lexicons due to its similarity to the tasting lexicon. Newly developed lexicons from this study can be applied to sensory consumer tests of chocolate.

Temporal Processing of Joyful and Disgusting Food Pictures by Women With an Eating Disorder

The present study used the presentation of food pictures and judgements about their duration to assess the emotions elicited by food in women suffering from an eating disorder (ED). Twenty-three women diagnosed with an ED, namely anorexia (AN) or bulimia nervosa (BN), and 23 healthy controls (HC) completed a temporal bisection task and a duration discrimination task. Intervals were marked with emotionally pre-rated pictures of joyful and disgusting food, and pictures of neutral objects. The results showed that, in the bisection task, AN women overestimated the duration of food pictures in comparison to neutral ones. Also, compared to participants with BN, they perceived the duration of joyful food pictures as longer, and tended to overestimate the duration of the disgusting ones. These effects on perceived duration suggest that AN women experienced an intense reaction of fear when they were confronted to food pictures. More precisely, by having elevated the arousal level and activated the defensive system, food pictures seemed to have speeded up the rhythm of the AN participants’ internal clock, which led to an overestimation of images’ duration. In addition, the results revealed that, in both tasks, ED women presented a lower temporal sensitivity than HC, which was related to their ED symptomatology (i.e., BMI, restraint and concern) and, particularly, to their weaker cognitive abilities in terms of attention, processing speed and working memory. Considered all together, the findings of the present experiment highlight the role of fear and anxiety in the manifestations of AN and point out the importance of considering non-temporal factors in the interpretation of time perception performance.

Understanding consumers' perception of lamb meat using free word association

The aims of the present study were to gather information about Brazilian consumers' perception of lamb meat and to study whether the perception is affected by the consumption frequency of this type of meat. A total of 1025 Brazilian consumers completed word association task with lamb meat. The elicited words were analyzed using inductive coding. Participants' associations with lamb meat were mainly related to sensory characteristics and hedonic attitudes and feelings, indicating that they might be the main motivations for consuming this product. Participants strongly associated lamb meat with special consumption occasions, which suggests that lack of perceived appropriateness for everyday consumption situations might be a barrier for increasing lamb meat consumption. Conceptualization of lamb meat was strongly affected by frequency of consumption of this product. Results from the present work provide a comprehensive insight on Brazilian consumers' perception of lamb meat, which can be used to develop strategies to increase its consumption and improve profitability.

It is not just a meal, it is an emotional experience - a segmentation of older persons based on the emotions that they associate with mealtimes

Worldwide, the group of older persons is growing fast. To aid this important group in their food and meal requirements, a deeper insight into the expectations and experiences of these persons regarding their mealtimes and snack times is needed. In the current study, we aim to identify consumer segments within the group of vital community-dwelling older persons on the basis of the emotions they associate with their mealtimes and snack times (from now on referred to as mealtimes). Participants (n = 392, mean age 65.8 (years) ± 5.9 (SD)) completed an online survey. The survey consisted of three questionnaires: emotions associated with mealtimes, functionality of mealtimes, and psychographic characteristics (health and taste attitudes, food fussiness, and food neophobia). Consumer segments were identified and characterised based on the emotions that the respondents reported to experience at mealtimes, using a hierarchical cluster analysis. Clusters were described using variables previously not included in the cluster analysis, such as functionality of mealtimes and psychographic characteristics. Four consumer segments were identified: Pleasurable averages, Adventurous arousals, Convivial indulgers, and Indifferent restrictives. These segments differed significantly in their emotional associations with mealtimes both in valence and level of arousal. The present study provides actionable insights for the development of products and communication strategies tailored to the needs of vital community-dwelling older persons.

How emotions expressed by adults' faces affect the desire to eat liked and disliked foods in children compared to adults

The aim of this study was to determine whether or not pleasure, neutrality, and disgust expressed by eaters in photographs could affect the desire to eat food products to a greater extent in children than in adults. Children of 5 and 8 years of age, as well as adults, were presented with photographs of liked and disliked foods. These foods were presented either alone or with an eater who expressed three different emotions: pleasure, neutrality, or disgust. Results showed that, compared with food presented alone, food presented with a pleasant face increased the desire to eat disliked foods, particularly in children, and increased the desire to eat liked foods only in the 5-year-old children. In contrast, with a disgusted face, the desire to eat the liked foods decreased in all participants, although to a greater extent in children, while it had no effect on the desire to eat the disliked foods. Finally, food presented with a neutral face also increased and decreased the desire to eat disliked and liked foods, respectively, and in each case more for the 5-year-olds than for the older participants. In sum, the facial expressions of others influence the desire to eat liked and disliked foods and, to a greater extent, in younger children.

Sex Differences in Food Preferences of Hadza Hunter-Gatherers

Food preferences are important for understanding foraging choices. In studying human foragers rather than other animals, we have the advantage of being able to ask them which foods they prefer. Yet surprisingly, no studies of systematically collected data exist on human forager food preferences. The Hadza of Tanzania are full-time foragers in an area where the hominin record extends back to 3-4 million years ago, so their diet is very relevant for understanding the paleo-diet. Here, we report on their food preferences, elicited with photographs of species within the five major food categories in their diet: honey, meat, berries, baobab, and tubers. There were sex differences in the ranks of two food categories: meat and berries. While male and female ranks agreed on the other three food categories, females ranked berries second and meat fourth, whereas males ranked meat second and berries fourth. Theses similarities and differences are interesting in light of the fact that the sexes target different foods. We discuss the implications of Hadza food preferences for the origin of the uniquely human sexual division of foraging labor.

Emotions generated by food in elderly French people

Eating behaviour depends partly on food preference, which may be determined by different types of emotions. Among the emotions generated by food, disgust and pleasure are common and can lead to increased and reduced food consumption. We tested the hypothesis that (1) elderly men and women felt different emotions towards food, and (2) low energy intake is related to negative emotions towards food. In February 2004, a convenience sample of elderly participants was recruited locally by telephone. Food intake of 52 elderly people, aged 63-80 years, was monitored throughout each day for one week and made it possible to assign the elderly people to two groups (low and high energy intake from food consumption data). One month later, each of them assessed their likes or dislikes towards 30 food pictures (vegetables, cheeses, fruits, starchy foods, sweets, meat, fish, offal and eggs) using 19 emotional words (eight words with a positive valence: 'to like', 'thrilled', 'satisfaction', 'surprise', 'serene', 'amused', 'pride', 'interest', and 11 other words with a negative valence: 'disgust', 'indifference', 'guilt', 'uneasiness', 'nostalgia', 'impatience', 'doubt', 'frustration', 'embarrassment', 'disappointment' and 'lassitude'. The emotional intensities experienced with the different pictures were analysed by ANOVA for each group (men and women, small and big eaters). There were differences in likes and dislikes between men and women. Both guilty and liking scores towards food were generally higher in women than in men. Small eaters felt more doubt, unease, disappointment and indifference towards food than big eaters. In conclusion, the report of low food intake was related to more negative emotions towards foods that might be associated with the willingness to restrict food intake or to undernutrition.

Emotion and food. Do the emotions expressed on other people's faces affect the desire to eat liked and disliked food products?

The aim of the present study was to test if pleasure, neutrality and disgust expressed by other individuals on a photograph could affect the desire to eat liked or disliked food products. Forty-four men and women were presented with two series of photographs. The first series of photographs was composed of six food photographs: three liked and three disliked food products. The second series consisted of the same photographs presented with eaters expressing three different emotions: disgust, pleasure or neutrality. Results showed that the effect of the presence of an eater, and of emotions expressed by this eater, depended on the food category. For the liked foods, the desire to eat was higher when these foods were presented alone than with an eater expressing neutral emotion. When the eater expressed pleasure, the desire to eat these liked foods did not significantly increase. In contrast, when the eater expressed disgust, the desire to eat them significantly decreased. When the foods were disliked, the influence of the pleasant social context was stronger than for the liked foods. The desire to eat the disliked foods actually increased in the presence of an eater expressing pleasure. On the contrary, the disgust and neutral context had no effect on the desire for disliked foods.

Is the desire to eat familiar and unfamiliar meat products influenced by the emotions expressed on eaters’ faces?

The aim of the present study was to test if the social context represented by eaters' faces expressing emotions can modulate the desire to eat meat, especially for unfamiliar meat products. Forty-four young men and women were presented with two series of photographs. The first series (non-social context) was composed of eight meat pictures, four unfamiliar and four familiar. The second series (social context) consisted of the same pictures presented with eaters expressing three different emotions: disgust, pleasure or neutrality. For every picture, the participants were asked to estimate the intensity of their desire to eat the meat product viewed on the picture. Results showed that meat desire depended on interactions between product familiarity, social context and the participant's gender. In the non-social context, the men liked the familiar meat products more than the women, whereas their desire to eat unfamiliar meat products was similar. Compared to the non-social context, viewing another person eating with a neutral and a happy facial expression increased the desire to eat. Furthermore, the increase in the desire to eat meat associated with happy faces was greater for the unfamiliar than for the familiar meat products in men, and greater for the familiar than for the unfamiliar meats in women. In the presence of disgusted faces, the desire to eat meat remained constant for unfamiliar products in all participants whereas it only decreased for familiar products in men.