The results of the Imperial Mandarin Granulation Study undertaken by Citrus Australia and the University of Queensland reveal that consumers find fruit with up to 35% granulation the most appealing.
The work, undertaken in conjunction with UQ’s Dr Sangeeta Prakash tested acceptable levels of mandarin granulation through a trained panel to develop uniform language around granulation and determine repeatability.
“Attributes such as the chewiness, hardness and fibrous-ness of the mandarin segments increased while juiciness and ease of swallowing the bolus decreased.”
The Project then initiated a consumer study investigating the maximum granulation consumers – male, female and across a range of ages - will accept before rejecting fruit.
Fruit with up to 35% granulation won hands-down. By comparison, consumers were not keen on the flavour intensity, sweetness, or chewiness of fruit with 45% granulation but said they were not so put off that they wouldn’t buy it, and fruit with over 55% granulation was rejected on all attributes and preferences.
“The study showed that the correlation with juice percentage and granulation was not strong, which means a visual assessment is our best opportunity at this point. I think the technology for determining the level of granulation in the fruit on the packing line is not far away, and that will make a significant difference to the amount of granulated fruit that gets to market.”
The Citrus Australia team is meanwhile developing a visual chart which will show photographs of the granulation levels that consumers prefer or resist.
