Effect of retail lights on acceptability of salami

The effects of light source on the acceptability of Hungarian, Hot-Hungarian and regular salamis were investigated. The color of all salamis was most preferred (P < 0.05) under incandescent (INC) light, as compared to fluorescent (FL) and metal halide (MH). Higher buying response was also evident when INC was used. The two Hungarian salamis, which had a high red component (higher a* and chroma values), received higher color preference scores under FL compared to MH. Most panelists described the color of the Hungarian salami under INC light as red, but brown under FL and MH. Relative luminance data, collected with a fiber optic probe connected to a photo-diode array, demonstrated the reason to be low red color seen in salamis presented under FL and MH lights. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.