Olfaction and Gustation in the Flavor and Fragrance Industries

• Published in: Handbook of Olfaction and Gustation pp. 1067 - 1078
• Main Authors: Mattei, Benjamin, Montet, Arnaud, Tabert, Matthias H
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken, NJ, USA John Wiley & Sons, Inc 12.05.2015
• Subjects: chemosensory perception; flavor and fragrance industry; gustation; olfaction; sensory discrimination methods
• ISBN: 1118139224; 9781118139226
• DOI: 10.1002/9781118971758.ch48

This chapter discusses how chemosensory perception is used in the flavor and fragrance industry to design flavors and fragrances. It first provides an overview of this industry, including its history. The chapter explores how this industry employs chemosensory, affective, and conceptual measurement in the development and assessment of products. The primary mission of the modern flavor and fragrance industry is to create and blend raw materials into flavors and fragrances that meet market demands. A major challenge of the flavor and fragrance industry is to decipher how concepts such as "authentic,” “natural,” “healthy,” or “feminine” are formed and their influence on the buying habits of consumers. More than any other sensory system, olfaction drives perceptive and cognitive processes closely linked to human emotions. It is important for the industry to make sure that the consumers recognize the chemosensory character of the product that is marketed.