Search

Mycoprotein is a fungal-based meat alternative sold in food retail in various countries around the world. The present study builds on a multi-national sample and uses partial least square structural equation modeling. The proposed conceptual model identified key factors that are driving and inhibiting consumer willingness to try, buy, and pay a price premium for mycoprotein. The results relate to the overall sample of 4088 respondents and to two subsample comparisons based on gender and meat consumption behavior. The results show that the biggest drivers of willingness to consume mycoprotein were healthiness, followed by nutritional benefits, safe to eat, and sustainability. Affordability and taste had mixed results. Willingness to consume mycoprotein was inhibited if nutritional importance was placed on meat and, to a lesser extent, if the taste, texture, and smell of meat were deemed important. Best practice recommendations address issues facing marketing managers in the food industry.

Cultured meat is a relatively new product, enjoying consumer appreciation as a more sustainable meat option. The present study builds on a sample from a diverse set of countries and continents, including China, the US, the UK, France, Spain, Netherlands, New Zealand, Brazil, and the Dominican Republic and uses partial least square structural equation modelling. The proposed conceptual model identified key factors driving and inhibiting consumer willingness to try, buy, and pay a price premium for cultured meat. Results relate to the overall sample of 3091 respondents and two sub-sample comparisons based on gender and meat consumption behaviour. Food neophobia, having food allergies, being a locavore, and having concerns about food technology were found to be inhibiting factors towards willingness to try, buy, and pay a price premium for cultured meat. Food curiosity, meat importance, and a consumer's perception of cultured meat as a realistic alternative to regular meat were found to be important drivers that positively impacted consumers' willingness to try, buy and pay more. Best practice recommendations address issues facing marketing managers in food retail and gastronomy.

Organic products are vulnerable to fraud due to their premium price. Analytical methodology helps to manage the risk of fraud and due to the miniaturization of equipment, tests may nowadays even be rapidly applied on-site. The current study aimed to evaluate portable near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) in combination with chemometrics to distinguish organic milk from other types of milk, and compare its performance with benchtop NIRS and fatty acid profiling by gas chromatography. The sample set included 37 organic retail milks and 50 non-organic retail milks (of which 36 conventional and 14 green ‘pasture’ milks). Partial least squares discriminant analysis was performed to build classification models and kernel density estimation (KDE) functions were calculated to generate non-parametric distributions for samples’ class probabilities. These distributions showed that portable NIRS was successful to distinguish organic milks from conventional milks, and so were benchtop NIRS and fatty acid profiling procedures. However, it was less successful when ‘pasture’ milks were considered too, since their patterns occasionally resembled those of the organic milk group. Fatty acid profiling was capable of distinguishing organic milks from both non-organic milks though, including the ‘pasture’ milks. This comparative study revealed that the classification performance of the portable NIRS for this application was similar to that of the benchtop NIRS. © 2018 Elsevier B.V.

Surfactant solution flow behavior is of great importance to both the chemical and consumer product industries. Most studies on the flow behavior of surfactant solutions, however, have focused on the dilute regime. Seldom reported is rheology in the highly concentrated regime where typically these surfactants are processed and delivered. First, we present here the phase diagram for the ternary system: water and two anionic surfactants (sodium salt of lauric and oleic acid) at different temperatures. Then, we present both linear viscoelastic and steady shear flow results in the high (70 to 90%) surfactant regime. We find that high values of the shear modulus are directly dependent on the quantity of surfactant crystals and that the formation of a lamellar liquid crystal phase at 45°C affects both modulus and flow of the system. Lamellar crystals create a stiff network resulting in wall slip at large shear strain. Using serrated plates removes slip at the wall and we find a shear rate where microfractures localize in a preferential plane and the material flows. This behavior is reversible.

We propose a state diagram of charged disk-like mineral particle (Laponite) dispersions as a function of the Laponite concentration (C) and the concentration of added salt (C(s)), based on simple observation and light-scattering measurements. At low C or high C(s) the dispersions separate into two domains due to sedimentation of Laponite aggregates, while at high C and low C(s) they form homogeneous gels that do not flow upon tube reversal. The aggregation rate and the structure factor of the Laponite dispersions is determined with light scattering as a function of C and C(s). We discuss in detail the controversy on the origin of gelation of Laponite dispersions in the absence of added salt. We argue that aggregation rather than glass formation causes gelation.

The hydroxyl end groups of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) have been transformed easily and quantitatively into amino groups via the Mitsunobu reaction. Phthalimide was alkylated with PEGs and the hydrazinolysis of the resulting phthalimido-PEGs gave the amino compounds in high yields. Quaternization of the amino groups leads to hydrophilic polymer chains bearing a positive charge on one or two ends, depending on the chosen PEG. Such products can be used to protect sterically, negatively charged particles such as clays.

The influence of pyrophosphate or polyethylene oxide (PEO) on the aggregation and gelation of dispersions of model disklike clay particles (Laponite) is studied using light scattering and rheology. Pyrophosphate adsorbs onto the positively charged rim and inhibits bond formation between the rim and the negatively charged faces of the particles. At low concentrations of pyrophosphate the aggregation of Laponite is only retarded, without significant modification of the structure of the aggregates and gels. The decrease of the aggregation rate can be explained by an increase of the energy barrier to the formation of bonds in proportion to the pyrophosphate concentration. Addition of a large amount of pyrophosphate leads to the breakup of Laponite aggregates and gels. PEO adsorbs onto the Laponite particles and inhibits aggregation by steric hindrance. The reduction of the aggregation rate depends on the molar mass and is maximal at about 1000 g/mol. Higher molar mass PEO bridges between the particles and leads to the formation of clusters or a weak gel immediately after mixture.