Projective mapping in sensory analysis of ewes milk cheeses: A study on consumers and trained panel performance

The objective of this work was to explore the differences and similarities between the assessments obtained by means of a trained panel and a group of naive consumers using Projective Mapping techniques. Ewes milk cheeses sensory description was used as a case study. For this purpose, data was analyzed by means of INDSCAL (individual difference scaling) and panels reproducibility, discrimination and consensus were studied. Trained panel in sensory profiling got better performance quality indexes using Projective Mapping techniques than consumer panel. However, results revealed great individual variability mainly attributable to the absence of specific sensory training. Overall consumer and trained panel sample configurations followed similar trends although several differences were also perceived in the maps. In order to obtain further interesting information and to avoid inaccurate or biased conclusions, the use of specific trained panel in parallel to consumers is highly recommended. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.