Rapid consumer-based sensory characterization of requeijao cremoso, a spreadable processed cheese: Performance of new statistical approaches to evaluate check-all-that-apply data

We investigated the performance of multidimensional alignment analysis and multidimensional scaling on phi coefficient values to evaluate check-all-that-apply questionnaire data. We evaluated 6 dairy foods belonging to the category of requeijao cremoso processed cheese (traditional, with starch, or with starch and vegetable fat). We obtained sensory descriptors using trained assessors in descriptive analysis for comparison. A check all-that-apply questionnaire used with 121 consumers (77 women and 44 men; 18 to 57 yr old) proved to be a suitable alternative for sensory profiling, providing descriptions similar to descriptive analysis and discriminating between products. Multidimensional alignment analysis and multidimensional scaling were efficient and logical approaches for obtaining a deeper understanding of the data, allowing us to clarify the relationships between sensory descriptors and products and contribute to optimizing the different formulations of requeijao cremoso.