3.5. Sensory evaluationThe overall

3.5. Sensory evaluation
The overall acceptability of sorghum RTE cereals corresponded
to “like slightly” on the hedonic scale (Table 3). The sorghum cereals
scored significantly lower than the OAT_R for appearance and
aroma liking. However, flavor was not significantly different from
the OAT_R for all sorghum cereals except RSC_H. The appearance of
RSC was preferred over WSC (p ¼ 0.002), but the flavor of WSC was
liked more than RSC (p ¼ 0.003). No significant differences were
found for cereals containing 700 g sorghum flour/kg compared
with those containing 550 g/kg.
This was a pilot consumer panel with only 50 panelists. Conducting
a larger-scale consumer panel may yield more significant
differences due to higher power. Additionally, descriptive studies
should be conducted in conjunction with the larger-scale consumer
trials to identify particular attributes that lead to improvement in
the sensory properties of sorghum cereals.
In a conjoint analysis on potential sorghum food products,
Vazquez-Araújo, Chambers, Cherdchu, 2012
reported that most
respondents indicated that similar sensory characteristics to current
products is important. In this study, although some subtle
differences in sensory properties were noted, the sorghum cereals
were at least similar to the commercial reference sample. Moreover,
the most important sensory characteristic identified in
Vazquez-Araújo et al. (2012)
for breakfast cerealdtexturedwas not
significantly different among any of the sample pieces in this study.
Importantly, this sensory panel was conducted without milk.
Although RTE ring-shaped extruded cereals, such as OAT_R, are
commonly consumed without milk, it is more common to consume
these cereals with milk. The textural properties of sorghum cereals
may be very different from the OAT_R in milk, although this was not
addressed in this study