ABSTRACT
The functional food sector is the most rapidly growing sector in the food industry. A key concern is whether functional foods will deliver on their promises to satisfy consumer needs. Functional food acceptance is based on taste. A small amount of sugar will improve the bitter taste of medicine dramatically. Taste and palatability determine choice of food and how efficiently it can be digested. Human taste developed mainly out of the ecosystem our evolutionary ancestors occupied and the nutrients they tried to obtain.
Taste is a sensory process responsible for oral perception of chemicals derived from food that stimulate receptor cells within the taste buds. Sensory testing uses one or more of the five senses to evaluate food. Bitter taste perception is natural and induces insensitive reactions. Some toxic compounds, including synthetic chemicals, secondary plant metabolites, rancid fats, and inorganic ions have a bitter taste. Perception of bitterness in food may be deemed a defense mechanism against potential poisons ingested in the form of foods.
Flavor is one of the most important attributes that determine consumer acceptance of food. Flavor perception only occurs if there is strong binding. New technologies have emerged worldwide in food production, processing, and preservation. Modern demands for foods that are fresh and have high nutritional value and good taste are the result of technical innovations and developments. Various methods and approaches such as taste masking, inhibition and suppression, and encapsulation are used to improve taste and increase consumer acceptance.
