Consumer Acceptance of Novel Lucuma Fruit Ice Cream in the US Market

This study explored the use of lucuma fruit powder in an ice cream formulation for the US market. Six ice cream prototypes were developed using five different lucuma fruit powder variants. A central location test was conducted with frequent ice cream consumers (n = 106) to assess acceptance, attribute intensity rating, ideal intensity levels, and purchase intent against a control sample with caramel flavor. The mean overall liking score for all lucuma ice creams was moderate. The overall, aroma, and flavor liking scores were significantly higher (p < 0.05) for lucuma ice cream samples, whereas the control sample was liked significantly more for texture. The Terrasoul variant of lucuma ice cream was the most liked among all samples, and the control was liked the least. Only the Terrasoul ice cream sample was successful in delivering significantly strong caramel, fruit, and sweet flavor levels; the other lucuma ice cream samples were more comparable to the control. The inclusion of lucuma powder increased powdery mouthfeel perception, negatively impacting texture liking. Consumers perceived all ice cream samples to be weak in flavor and fell short of delivering ideal levels. The US consumers had low-moderate food neophobia scores for lucuma fruit, with 57% showing interest in buying lucuma ice creams.