Sensory and Consumer Research in Food Product Design and Development

The food and beverage industries today face an intensely competitive business environment. To the degree that the product developer and marketer – as well as general business manager – can more fully understand the consumer and target development and marketing efforts, their business will be more successful.

Sensory and Consumer Research in Food Product Design and Development is the first book to present, from the business viewpoint, the critical issues faced by sensory analysts, product developers, and market researchers in the food and beverage arena. The book’s unique perspective stems from the author team of Moskowitz, Beckley, and Resurreccion, three leading practitioners in the field, who each combines an academic and business acumen. The beginning reader will be introduced to systematic experimentation at the very early stages, to newly emerging methods for data acquisition/knowledge development, and to points of view employed by successful food and beverage companies. The advanced reader will find new ideas, backed up by illustrative case histories, to provide yet another perspective on commonly encountered problems and their practical solutions.

Aimed toward all aspects of the food and beverage industry, Sensory and Consumer Research in Food Product Design and Development is especially important for those professionals involved in the early stages of product development, where business opportunity is often the greatest.

Howard R. Moskowitz, Ph.D., is president and CEO of Moskowitz Jacobs Inc., White Plains, NY, a firm he founded in 1981. Moskowitz is a well-known experimental psychologist in the field of psychophysics (the study of perception and its relation to physical stimuli) and an inventor of world-class market research technology. Among his important contributions to market research is his 1975 introduction of psychophysical scaling and product optimization for consumer product development. A member of the Institute of Food Technologists and numerous other professional societies, he has written/edited 16 books, published well over 300 articles, and serves on the editorial board of major journals. With colleague E.P. Koster, Moskowitz co-founded the journal Chemical Senses and Flavor, now called Chemical Senses, the leading journal in the field.

Jacqueline H. Beckley, M.B.A., is the founder of The Understanding & Insight Group, LLC, Denville, NJ, an innovative business development and strategy firm working with both large and small companies to integrate traditional approaches with new concepts and tools for business growth. Previously, Beckley held positions within industry and consulting, including director of consumer perception at Nabisco, Inc., group manager of sensory research and R&D for the Quaker Oats Company, and research scientist for Amoco Chemical Company.

Anna V.A. Resurreccion, Ph.D., is a professor of food science and technology at the University of Georgia. She has published 128 refereed journal articles reporting her research on sensory evaluation, consumer acceptance, and food quality evaluation. Resurreccion is a fellow of the Institute of Food Technologists and serves on editorial boards for the Journal of Sensory Studies and major journals. Previously, she was associate scientific editor for the Journal of Food Science and chair of the Product Development Division of the Institute of Food Technologists.