Meat and well-being: Investigate sensory red meat cues
Emerging food trends now see consumers making food choices that are beyond just tenderness, flavour and juiciness and traditional butchery/chef plate profiling of red meat - they now have a much larger focus on health and wellness.
| Publication date: | 22 February 2022 |
| Project status: | Completed |
| Livestock species: | Grain-fed Cattle, Grass-fed Cattle, Sheep, Goat, Lamb |
| Relevant regions: | National |
|
Download Report
(0.7 MB)
|
|
Summary
The first consumer-led and product-specific emotion lexicon consisting of 20 emotion terms was generated to evaluate consumer emotional responses to red meat (beef and lamb) consumption. Subsequently, a quantitative consumer (n=126) hedonic and emotional assessment of 16 different meat experiences was conducted to validate the emotion lexicon. The 16 consumer experiences were generated in New Zealand by combining 2 species (beef, lamb), 2 muscles [Longissimus lumborum (LL): short loin, Semimembranosus (SM): topside], 2 degrees of doneness [medium-rare (MR), well-done (WD)] and 2 contexts (BBQ outdoors, Dinner at home) to provide a broad range of sensory experiences. Meat composition was mapped along with consumer overall liking and emotional response profiles for the evaluated samples. Consumer overall liking was higher for lamb, LL and MR than for beef, SM and WD, respectively.
Objectives
Implement/adapt methodologies for consumer emotional evaluation: select and implement methodologies/techniques to measure consumer emotions/feelings/mood associated with red meat consumption.
Assess the nutritional, functional, and emotional mapping of selected red meat cuts: the quality and nutritional properties of a selected range of red meat cuts will be presented along with the sensory and emotional profile of the cuts.
Complete series of key stakeholder interviews with industry to test value proposition and technical feasibility for the concept and rigor behind the carcass mapping pathway/cues.
Key findings
Carcass mapping based on emotions beyond liking may facilitate insightful and nuanced product differentiation aligned with product performance as experienced by consumers in a given context for marketing purposes.
If certain emotions are confirmed with further studies as predictors of potential market success, the meat industry could reduce the risk of introducing a cut in the marketplace that is prone to fail in adding value and reduce the lengthy testing time.
• There are potential but not insurmountable barriers identified for front of the pack labelling of beef and lamb for health and wellness purposes.
Benefits to industry
Consumers are considering health and wellness more than just eating quality indicators in their choice of beef and lamb as meal ingredients. Meat processors and purveyors must respond to this signal from consumers by providing evidence-based front of the pack messages/information about beef and lamb nutrients and functionalities to (1) enable consumers to make informed decisions at the point of meat purchase about which cuts better support their wellbeing requirements, (2) attract premiums for farmers and processors alike, and (3) ensure a sustainable meat industry long-term.
MLA action
The final report will be published and made publicly available via the MLA website.
Future research
It is recommended that the study be extended to include most of the major muscles on a carcass for beef and lamb and to validate other factors and lexicons that might be more appropriate for describing the emotions of consumers towards cuts rich in nutrients but lower in palatability for marketing and adding value purposes.
|
For more information Contact Project Manager: John Marten |
