Acceptability of newly protein-fortified recipes in older adults in France

International audienceA loss of appetite may appear with the onset of age. This predisposes the older person to a decrease in food intake, which increases the risk of undernutrition. To combat undernutrition, public health policies advocate food-based fortification, which consists of deliberately increasing the content of an essential nutrient in a diet without increasing the volume to be ingested. However, the challenge remains in developping products with nutritional benefits and satisfying sensory aspects.The present study assessed the acceptability of standard and fortified variants of 6 recipes (12 samples in total). 106 participants (> 70 y) living at home were recruited at Dijon and Angers (France) to assess for each sample liking, oral comfort and Check-All-That-Apply questions at the laboratory. Fortified recipes provided an additional load of 6.4 to 17 g of protein per portion (mean = 10.3, SD = 3.6), depending on the technological constraints. This additional load was reached by using common food ingredients (e.g. dairy products, almond, egg, oil, butter) and protein extracts (milk protein isolate or soya minced extrudates). Recipes will be reworked afterwards depending on feedbacks to ensure a co-creation approach.Fortified products are never better appreciated than standard ones. Although half of the fortified products are less appreciated than the standard ones, they are still appreciated (the lowest score being 4.12/7). Liking of fortified products is dependent on the protein extracts used and the matrices type (liquid to solid). While dependent of the recipe, doing fortification often complicates the oral comfort. A general trend can be identified: fortified products are significantly less light, moist, smooth, tasty and lumpier and thicker