Comparison of lexicons for descriptive analysis of whey and soy proteins in New Zealand and the USA

Whey and soy proteins are valuable ingredients with multiple roles. Globally, production of both protein types in the form of dried concentrates and isolates continues to increase. The objectives of this study were to document the descriptive sensory properties of whey and soy proteins, and to compare the differences and similarities between sensory languages and panel performance at two locations: New Zealand and the U.S.A. Eighteen whey and so), proteins (11 whey protein concentrates/isolates and 7 soy protein concentrates/isolates) were selected from a larger sample set of 52 proteins. The protei. its were rehydrated and evaluated in triplicate by trained panels at each site. Sensory languages developed by each location were highly similar although usage of specific descriptors differed between the two locations. Key flavor characteristics among the protein types (whey versus soy) were described by different attributes (P < 0.05). Product differentiation by principal component biplots and RV coefficient were similar between the two locations. Flavor variability existed in both whey and soy proteins, and there were specific flavor characteristics associated with each protein type. These results provide fundamental information on key sensory attributes of these widely used dry ingredients, provide a platform to develop an international sensory language, and demonstrate that independently defined sensory languages can produce comparable results at different locations.