From Composition to Acceptance: Linking Nutritional, Structural and Sensory Attributes in Clean-Label Breads.

Area of Science:

• Food Science
• Sensory Science
• Nutritional Science

Background:

• Increasing consumer demand for clean-label bakery products necessitates understanding ingredient impacts.
• Functional ingredients and physicochemical properties significantly influence consumer perception of bread.

Purpose of the Study:

• To characterize clean-label breads using instrumental and sensory analyses.
• To identify key drivers of consumer liking and disliking in clean-label bread formulations.

Main Methods:

• Instrumental analyses: color, porosity, free amino acids, total phenolic content, antioxidant activity.
• Consumer evaluation: hedonic testing and Check-All-That-Apply (CATA) with 65 consumers.
• Correlation and penalty analyses to link instrumental data with consumer preference.

Main Results:

• Flour type and seed inclusion altered bread color, structure, and bioactive compounds.
• Higher phenolic content correlated with complex aromas; higher porosity with softer perception.
• Taste and texture strongly correlated with overall liking (r > 0.84).

Conclusions:

• Softness, chewability, sweetness, and umami are key drivers of clean-label bread acceptance.
• Dryness, bitterness, and bran odor negatively impact consumer preference.
• Formulating acceptable clean-label breads requires balancing structural, flavor, and nutritional attributes.