SENSORY EVALUATION AND ANALYSIS OF CHANGING BEVERAGE COLOR

[[abstract]]From the perspective of sensory evaluation, this study combined vision, smell, and taste to assess whether a color alteration would affect sensory judgments. Therefore, color selection is an important component for drink packaging design. This research is conducted in two stages: (1) from the market research, literature review, and focus groups, four types of juice were selected for an experiment; and (2) to perform the experiment, two sessions of random taste of different fruit drinks were organized for subjects to identify them. The results revealed that if the color of a beverage matches its taste, the average rate of accuracy is above 94%. Upon switching the taste and the color, only 41% of participants identified certain flavors. The experimental results showed that the majority of participants chose to rely on vision of color, subsequently ignoring judgments of smell and taste. The results can act as a reference for fruit juice packaging designs. This study suggests that color schemes and product packaging have a close relationship of interdependence, particularly with natural food products' "appropriate or natural color" being emphasized by current consumers. Thus, an excellent drink packaging design and an appropriate implication of contents' color require serious consideration