Deciphering deliciousness with UniMelb food scientists

We're all aware of emotional eating, and have possibly indulged in it ourselves. Now, this phrase has new resonance. Researchers at the University of Melbourne’s new sensory lab are testing more than our tastebuds in an attempt to divine what makes food delicious (or unpalatable, for that matter), based on our bodily reactions to it. Wine scientist Dr Sigfredo Fuentes, who runs the lab, explained why he and his team couldn't simply ask people how, for instance, a chocolate bar tasted: around 80 per cent of our response to food is subconscious. Fuentes' colleague, Damir Torrico, informed that, "These unconscious reactions are more reflective of the true feelings you have for the product in the moment". Using 20 biometrics – measurable characteristics that are unique to individuals – Fuentes hopes to tap into people's inner food critics, ultimately to assist small-to medium sized food businesses to make the tastiest products possible. Measuring the subconscious Participants are placed in isolated sensory booths, and asked to taste certain foods and drinks. Their responses are monitored via video and infrared thermal cameras, and are fed into facial recognition and eye-tracking software. Also, biometrics like their body temperature, skin conductivity, heart rate, and pupil dilation are measured. Finally, using AI algorithms in combination with participants' verbal appraisals, a full reflection of their responses to various edibles – including their packaging – is determined. The project, which began in April 2017, is already seeing success. "We can now assess [people's responses to] beer packaging just using biometrics," Fuente said. Taste is a matter of taste Darwin discovered that human emotions are universal. Fuente is learning that tastes aren't. He has watched this play out in the lab, where reactions to food depend on one's familiarity with it, as well as one's culture. He outlined, for example, how Westerners generally frown and cringe "with surprise" whilst eating sour gummy bears. Asians, by contrast, tend to have a neutral expression. "This is probably because they are more used to sour food," he explained. These types of findings can be used to assist food brands to break into different cultural markets. Beyond food As tempting as it sounds, the sensory lab is not just for sampling nibbles. Its eye-tracking software is also being used by banks to test people's reactions to product pages on their websites. An initial, perhaps unsurprising discovery, is that too much information is off-putting. Food science students, too, stand to benefit form the lab. In addition to learning their major, they get a taste of computer science and physics, and even some bite-size artificial intelligence knowledge.

Deciphering deliciousness with UniMelb food scientists

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Head of Teaching & Learning | NAISDA

Australian Signals Directorate

Assistant Professor in Real Estate / Sustainability / Technology

Director of Research Centre for Resources Engineering towards Carbon Neutrality

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